CyberSeek

 

 

 

 

Visualizing the need for and supply of cybersecurity workers across the country, a cybersecurity jobs heat map, CyberSeek, has been developed by CompTIA in partnership with Lightcast. The tool provides data to help employers, job seekers, policy makers, training providers, and guidance counselors meet today’s increasing demand. When the tool was first launched in 2016, CyberSeek unveiled information on the supply of workers with relevant credentials and career pathways in cybersecurity that map opportunities for advancement in the field.

In the Fall of 2019, NICE, CompTIA, and Lightcast (previously Burning Glass Technologies) announced that the CyberSeek tool would be expanded to tackle the increasingly critical problem of cybersecurity skills gaps and worker shortages. In this expansion, enhancements were made to be able to retrieve even more information at the national, state, and metro levels and in the private and public sector.

In the Fall of 2021, in addition to regular data updates, CyberSeek announced the release of a new Education and Training Provider map. The list of providers is searchable by geography, by institution, and by the type of credential offered – associate, bachelor’s and graduate degrees, and industry-recognized certifications.

In Summer of 2022, CyberSeek announced new updates which included new data that show that demand for cybersecurity talent is speeding up as more public and private sector organizations look to strengthen defenses against a multitude of threats. In the US, there were 714,548 job postings for cybersecurity job roles and skills during the 12-month period running through April 2022.

In Fall 2022, during Cybersecurity Career Awareness Week, CyberSeek.org announced new data which revealed that for the 12-month period ending in September 2022, employers listed 769,736 openings for cybersecurity positions or jobs requiring cybersecurity skills.

CyberSeek Resources:

An informational webinar was in February 2016, providing a background on the vision and scope for the project. View the recording of The Cybersecurity Talent Search Solution: An Informational Webinar.

In March 2017, A NICE Webinar was held on the topic of career pathway systems. The CyberSeek Pathway tool was demonstrated as a mechanism to identify entry-, mid-, and advanced-level cybersecurity jobs and apply the NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework to help individuals identify the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary for career advancement. View the recording of the NICE Webinar: Building a Career Pathways System for Cybersecurity. 

In May 2018, a webinar was held to show how to use CyberSeek to gain actionable insight about the cybersecurity workforce. A demo was also provided. View the recording of Hack the Cybersecurity Skill Gap with CyberSeek.org.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did the idea of CyberSeek come about?This idea originated through the intersection public and private sector discussions covering the many challenges and questions associated with the cybersecurity jobs landscape. These discussions led to the recognition of the need for new ways to assess and ultimately improve the cybersecurity talent pipeline. Research by Lightcast, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and CompTIA have shown that cybersecurity jobs are in high and growing demand and that a critical shortage of qualified workers exists across the nation.

What is the need for CyberSeek? What problem does it address?While data sources and reports covering various aspects of the cybersecurity jobs market already exist, a number of gaps and shortcomings remain. These gaps can lead to inefficiencies, extra costs, wasted time, or missed opportunities for employers, job seekers and other stakeholders. This initiative will build upon existing efforts to expand the integration of data covering the supply of cybersecurity workers with the demand for cybersecurity workers.

Who are the potential users of CyberSeek?
With ever greater rates of interconnectivity and digitalization, cybersecurity now touches every business, government agency, worker, or citizen on some level. Consequently, there are many potential users of this map, including: employers, job seekers, academic institutions, training providers, guidance counselors, and public policy makers.

What is the role of NIST and NICE in this initiative?
This project is supported by the NICE, a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the U.S. Department of Commerce, under Grant #60NANB22D100.

What is the role of CompTIA in this initiative?
CompTIA serves as one of the project co-leads. CompTIA provides expertise in the areas of workforce development, data analytics, visualization, and project management.

The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a vendor-neutral IT certifying body with nearly 2.7 million certifications earned through rigorous, performance-based exams. CompTIA develops innovative on-ramps and career pathways to expand opportunities to populations that traditionally have been under-represented in the information technology workforce.

What is the role of Lightcast in this initiative?
Lightcast (previously Burning Glass Technologies) serves as one of the project co-leads. Lightcast provides expertise in the areas of data analytics, software development, visualization, and project management.

Lightcast provides information on job skills, workforce talent, and labor market dynamics, providing expertise that empowers businesses, education providers, and governments to find the skills and talent they need and enables workers to unlock new career opportunities. Lightcast market research, analytical software, and data expertise is used by companies across the globe to better understand their own workforce and identify skilled and diverse talent for future growth.

Beyond the parties above, what other stakeholders are involved in providing input and guidance?
Because of the expansive nature of cybersecurity, it is critical to have input from the many stakeholders involved in the space. To formalize this input, an advisory committee was formed at the kick-off of the project and held meetings in 2015-2016. The committee included representation from government, academia, not-for-profit organizations, technology companies, and businesses that invest heavily in cybersecurity workforce development.

What are the key parameters of this initiative? What elements are considered outside the scope of this initiative?
While this map will have the ability to meet the needs of a wide range of users, it is not the type of initiative that allows for custom work for specific groups or individuals. It should be thought of as a public platform that can be used and leveraged, rather than an entity providing custom consulting services.

CyberSeek is supported by the NICE, a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the U.S. Department of Commerce, under financial assistance award # 60NANB22D100. Learn more at cyberseek.org.