SAN FRANCISCO, June 6, 2022 — NightDragon, a cybersecurity, safety, security, and privacy investment and advisory firm, and NextGen Cyber Talent, a nonprofit organisation dedicated to increasing diversity and inclusion in the cybersecurity industry through education and career opportunities for underserved and underrepresented students, today announced the launch of the Coalition to Close the Cybersecurity Talent Gap (“Coalition”), a campaign to raise $1 million to help close the cybersecurity talent gap.
The Coalition is made up of more than 25 industry-leading cybersecurity and technology executives who are committed to eliminating the cybersecurity skills gap by developing the next generation of cybersecurity talent. The Coalition has raised more than $300,000 of the $1 million required to support the cybersecurity education project for Bay Area kids since its inception, driven by a desire to make a difference in the lives of children and their communities.
NightDragon led the establishment of the coalition, which included NightDragon portfolio firms, go-to-market and investment partners, by using its extensive network. AllegisCyber Capital, Carahsoft, Claroty, Coalfire, Cyderes, Deloitte, Exclusive Networks, ForgeRock, HUMAN Security, iboss, Immuta, Ingram Micro, Interos, Knight Group, Macnica, Marsh, Merlin, Mezmo, NightDragon, Optiv, Palo Alto Networks, Prosek, Ten Eleven Ventures, ThriveDX, Safe.
“There are an estimated 2.7 million cybersecurity roles that have yet to be filled. As security teams around the world struggle to hire talent to monitor and remediate cyberattacks, as well as develop new technology to combat today’s latest threats, these vacancies pose a significant challenge “Founder and Co-Chairman of NextGen Cyber Talent and CISO of Gilead Sciences, Krishnan Chellakarai, said. “Solving the cybersecurity skills deficit will need a concerted effort from the whole sector. We’re asking the industry to join the campaign during the RSA Conference, and we’re excited to see how far we can get together to reduce the cybersecurity skill gap.”