Mike Brown, Symantec President & CEO, and R. Chandrashekhar, President, NASSCOM sign a Memorandum of Understanind (MoU) for "Buidling Cybersecurity Skills"
In June of last year, standing alongside Secretary Hillary Clinton at the Clinton Global Initiative America meeting, Symantec first launched the Symantec Cyber Career Connection (SC3). Almost one year to the day, President and Chief Executive Officer of Symantec Michael A. Brown joined R. Chandrashekhar, President of the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), in announcing the expansion of SC3 to India. SC3 is designed to help close the cybersecurity skills gap by attracting, educating, and training underserved young adults for careers in cybersecurity. We’ve followed the U.S. pilot program throughout the year – from meeting the dedicated partners, Year Up and NPower, to hearing from the students and their journey in the program – and earlier last month, we announced the expansion to U.S. military veterans. And now, we’re thrilled to take it one step further and expand this program beyond the U.S. borders, a step that moves us towards bridging the global workforce gap in cybersecurity, and providing new career opportunities for young adults in India.
Cybersecurity threats are a global issue and are on the rise. The number of cyber security incidents reported in 2014 increased globally by 48 per cent to $42.8 million. By 2019 the demand for cyber security professionals is expected to rise to 6 million, but a gap in skills will leave a projected 1.5 million of those positions unfilled.
The partnership between Symantec and NASSCOM comes in response to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call at NASSCOM’s silver jubilee on March 1, 2015 to focus on global cybersecurity challenges. In Mike Brown’s address at the launch event, he said, “With the rise in targeted attacks aimed at Indian enterprises and consumers, cybersecurity has become more important than ever before. With the partnership with NASSCOM, we are taking the first big step towards building cyber security skills in India.”
Building Cybersecurity Skills
The initiative will focus on curriculum development for five job roles in line with the National Skills Qualifications Framework, a master training programme. Additionally, there will be scholarships for 1000 women taking NASSCOM cyber security certifications. The programme will also facilitate internships with a goal of employment for certified trainees. Symantec employees will also have opportunities to volunteer as subject matter experts and mentors.
“We’re excited to see the SC3 program expand internationally,” said Cecily Joseph, Vice President Corporate Responsibility. “The cybersecurity skills gap is a global problem, particularly when it comes to reaching women and other underserved populations. The NASSCOM partnership will enable us introduce 1,000 women to careers in cybersecurity, and that’s a great start to addressing this problem in India.”
To learn more about Symantec’s Cyber Career Connection, visit us here.