IT pros feeling the pressure

A recent study has found that professionals in the IT industry are under an enormous amount of pressure to secure resources due to an increasing number of  threats.

Security firm Trustwave, which conducted the survey, revealed that 54% of the 800 professionals questioned felt added pressure to keep their organisations secure last year, when compared to 2012. Further, 58% anticipated even more pressure this year.

It was found that the threat worrying the pros more than any other was targeted malware; 64% reported an increase in the past year. Just behind was theft of customer data, with 58% citing this as the main threat.

They said that the issue concerned them even more than legal action, fines and reputational damage together.

The compliance director for Trustwave, Michael Aminzade, feels that the main point to take from the study is the fact that senior managers are feeling the pressure in rolling out IT services without being ready. He said:

“This raises the issue of security compliance, but it’s clear from my observations that many IT professionals have had to undergo a steep learning curve over the last five years. Some 75 percent of respondents told us that they feel under pressure from above.”

The report found that 85% of pros think a larger IT security workforce would cut down on pressures and improve job effectiveness – suggesting that, if measures are taken to combat the increasing pressure, even more IT security jobs will become available in the not too distant future.