Skills shortage sees security specialists snag £10k a day

Demand for IT security experts four times larger than last year, recruiter claims

Cybersecurity experts are so in demand that they command daily rates of more than £10,000, according to a recruiter.

ManpowerGroup claims that demand for such specialists is up four times this year compared with in 2014. It puts the surge in demand down to the increasing amount of high-profile cyberattacks.

TalkTalk and Wetherspoons are among the latest well-known brands to have suffered at the hands of cybercriminals.

Last month, the government announced plans to boost the amount it spends on cybersecurity to £1.9bn by 2020 as well as recruit 1,900 new staff as part of a new "cyber force".

ManpowerGroup's UK managing director Mark Cahill said specialist staff are cashing in on the demand.

"There are millions of cyberattacks every day with a total cost to the global economy of up to $575bn a year," he said. "Companies are having to invest heavily to protect themselves and they now believe that cyber-breaches are inevitable, with their focus moving to responding to attacks rather than just prevention.

"We expect the biggest growth area next year to be in ‘cybersecurity crisis management', with large organisations bolstering their own in-house security teams as well as calling on specialist contractors.

"The shortage of people with the required skills means salaries for this new breed of specialists are vast – Christmas really has come early for this in-demand group.

"Some individuals can command daily rates in excess of £3,000, and some top cybersecurity specialists can even earn five-figure sums daily. With the potential risk to companies so significant and no signs of demand falling, those sky-high salaries look set to continue."