India is facing a serious shortage of cybersecurity personnel, amid rapid demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing.
This is the conclusion from a new report released by the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) in collaboration with the SANS Institute (the world's leading organization specializing in cybersecurity training and certification).
According to reports, the situation of cybersecurity skills training in India in the period 2025-2026 shows that up to 73% of businesses and 68% of service providers said they are lacking personnel with appropriate skills.
This reality reflects the increasing gap between the speed of digital transformation and the responsiveness of the labor force.
Recruitment also faces many obstacles when 84% of businesses take from one to six months to find suitable personnel for cybersecurity positions.
One of the main reasons is the incompatibility between job requirements and candidates' abilities.
About 63% of businesses believe that candidates lack practical skills, while nearly 60% said it is difficult to find personnel with multidisciplinary knowledge such as cloud computing, applications and identification systems.
The report points out that rapid changes in the technology environment are increasing pressure on the labor market.
Businesses are increasingly shifting to cloud platforms, architectures based on APIs and AI-integrated operating systems.
Meanwhile, automation is reducing demand in core positions, but increasing demand for in-depth and decision-making roles.
Notably, AI is becoming the main driving force driving human resource demand. About 83% of organizations believe that AI security and generative AI skills are very important, while 78% said they need to recruit AI security engineers.
At the same time, more than 60% of businesses have implemented projects related to AI and GenAI, increasing the risk of cyberattacks and requiring higher security expertise.
Some specific positions such as security architects or OT/ICS security experts are still very difficult to recruit. Nearly half of service providers and about 40% of businesses admit to having difficulty finding suitable personnel for these roles.
In addition, the pressure to retain talent is also a major challenge. About 70% of suppliers and 42% of businesses said they lost personnel to competitors due to more attractive salaries.
Limited opportunities to improve skills also contribute to increasing the turnover rate.
Experts believe that to solve this problem, it is necessary to strengthen the link between training and the actual needs of the industry, and at the same time promote skills enhancement programs.
In the context of the world increasingly relying on technology, ensuring high-quality cybersecurity human resources is a key factor to protect the digital ecosystem and maintain user trust.
