As the threat landscape becomes ever-more diffuse, diverse, and dangerous, the need for cyber security skills in organisations across all sectors will continue to increase – and rapidly.

Recent government research found that half of all businesses and public bodies lack the necessary basic security skills in their current workforce, with one in three reporting a need for additional advanced expertise.

The need of public sector entities – which are required to process and protect the most sensitive citizen data, while supporting front-line service delivery – is as great as any. But government agencies, local authorities and NHS trusts also face some of the biggest barriers to accessing and retaining skills; resources are often stretched incredibly thin, and it can be difficult, if not impossible, to offer competitive compensation to the most prized talent.

In this webinar event – hosted as part of PublicTechnology’s dedicated Cyber Security Week of specialised content – we will bring together a panel of public sector and industry experts. The discussion will cover the biggest issues faced by public bodies in ensuring they have the skills they need – both basic cyber awareness and best practice across the breadth of the organisation and more sophisticated specialist technical skills – as well as ways in which these challenges can be met.

Topics will include:

• Key areas where additional skills are most needed
• How to upskill existing staff in cyber
• What can the public sector offer security professionals?
• The role of diversity, equity and inclusion in building skills
• The need for clear career and development pathways