Page 8 - Cyber Warnings

An Alan Turing-Inspired Solution to the Cybersecurity Labor

Shortage

As the global pool of malicious cyberattackers grows in strength and innovation — finding new,
unheard of ways to breach our systems — the pool of professionals with the skills to outsmart
them continues to shrink. If your company has ever tried to recruit an IT professional with
cybersecurity experience, you know the skills gap is real. More than 80% of IT organizations
face a shortage of employees with specialized cybersecurity knowledge.

This labor shortage is one organizations can’t afford to ignore — no matter your industry, it’s all
too easy (and far too likely) for you to become the target of a cyber threat. Criminal attacks have
hit companies in all business areas, from manufacturing to retail, and everything in between.
The wearisome search for skilled reinforcements to work against these attacks has left the IT
industry uneasy, but we haven’t unturned every stone yet.

There’s a bright, uniquely talented, yet underemployed group of people who may have just the
right skill set to fulfill our cybersecurity labor shortage. They have the intelligence, competence,
and technical expertise to thrive in the IT industry; all they need is the opportunity to put their
talents to work.

Who are these talented workers? Individuals with autism.

While people with autism have traditionally been overlooked in the labor market, tech
companies have begun to take notice of the impressive contributions they can make. It appears
that some traits associated with autism, such as a propensity for numbers, the ability to
hyperfocus, and meticulous attention to detail, are all qualities that are a great asset to a
programmer or anyone who works with large data sets.

Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, and software giant SAP have all instituted pilot programs to hire
people with autism for IT positions. Others, including IBM and Dell, are laying the groundwork
for similar programs, according to the Harvard Business Review. There’s also the nonPareil
Institute, a Texas school and software company devoted to teaching coding to young adults with
autism.

The results look promising. If your company hasn’t previously considered tapping into the pool
of people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) — especially in the world of cybersecurity —
here’s why you should.

Neurodiversity at Work in IT

Consider one of the heroes of modern computing: Alan Turing. The British mathematician and
logician is famous for his contributions to cracking the code of the Enigma machine during
World War II, which allowed the Allies to intercept the Germans’ coded messages. Some
historians believe his work shortened the war in Europe by two to four years.

8 Cyber Warnings E-Magazine – June 2017 Edition
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