Cyber Security: Why is this a learning trend in India
Hard core IT jobs like network administrators or software developers had been in vogue for several years now. College students kept that in mind while choosing specialisation subjects. Interestingly, 2021 saw a demand for cyber security jobs and therefore, more students wanted to study cyber security as a college curriculum subject. Online courses around cyber security also saw a boom across all levels, with cyber security awareness courses becoming popular at middle school level too.
Why did cyber security become so important in 2021?
The recent overwhelming need for cyber security in India is due to several factors such as these:
Digital India move and Demonetization
According to Ashok Pamidi, the senior director of NASSCOM, while the government’s initiatives such as Digital India and demonetization opened up new jobs, made companies pivot to digital, and also opened them to cyber threats. All this happened before 2021, but the lockdown scenario this year intensified criminal activities, and therefore raised the demand for cyber security professionals in the corporate and heavy industry sectors.
Application of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
Although the GDPR rules continue to be tightest in Europe, India is affected too with so many companies in our country dealing in global businesses. Though formulated earlier, GDPR was just getting implemented here when the pandemic started. Data protection requirements rose steeply, as did the demand for qualified professionals. .
Repeated ransomware attacks through 2020 and 2021
Criminals had a field day, hacking into government and corporate systems, blocking access to crucial data, and demanding astronomical ransoms all over the world. Indian companies saw their fair share of hacking too, and cyber security became a necessity instead of an add-on.
India still lacks cyber security professionals
Regardless of the reasons for the increase in demand worldwide since mid-2018, India still has a vast demand for qualified professionals who can deal with cyber security issues. Though we have the largest IT talent pool in the world, according to NASSCOM’s 2021 report, India lacks skilled cyber security experts. This explains the dash to study this subject more. It is definitely one of the strongest emerging areas for new opportunities in future for students.