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Addressing the Cybersecurity Diversity Gap

Join us at the next Day of Shecurity

DOS Leadership Summit – October 2, 2025, in Boston, MA

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Mission

Secure Diversity exists to increase diversity in cybersecurity. The lack of diversity and inclusive environments for individuals who have been historically excluded due to various identities is still an issue. Initially, Secure Diversity is focused on gender diversity at all levels of cybersecurity, as in 2022, women still make up less than 24 percent of cybersecurity roles. The percentage decreases as one moves up the leadership ladder (data on non-binary individuals is very limited).

Secure Diversity aims to solve the three largest obstacles that people, particularly historically excluded genders, face when seeking to get into and level up in the cybersecurity industry:

  • Lack of knowledge about cybersecurity jobs
  • Financial barriers to training and education
    • Launched October 2022 – SANS Leadership Academy to INCREASE GENDER DIVERSITY in Cybersecurity Leadership
  • Lack of new to cybersecurity roles

Gender Diversity Data

“According to all respondents to the study, women account for 22% of security teams on average. This finding is supported by a variety of industry studies, including data from LinkedIn that was gathered at the same time as the ISC2 study, suggesting that across 14 countries surveyed, the percentage of women working in cybersecurity ranges from a high of 26.7% in Italy to a low of 14.6% in Germany” – ISC2.

  • This 2025 data represents a 3% decrease over five years in the percentage of women in the industry, as in 2020, the ISC2 study found women were 25% of the cybersecurity workforce.
  • Data with the pandemic’s impact?2
    • Women in the tech industry were twice as likely to be furloughed or laid off than their male counterparts
    • A total of 2.5 million women left the workforce in the US
    • 43% of women report remote work as being a positive experience, while 42% of women have negative views
    • 54% of women say that the pandemic is making it harder for them to break into the tech industry

There is a lack of gender diversity in cybersecurity leadership, which Secure Diversity contributed to changing. The Secure Diversity Leadership Academy launched in October 2022 through a partnership with the SANS Institute. The cohort completed their certifications in spring 2023. If you want to support us in running another cohort, contact sponsor@securediversity.org.