The mission to defeat cybercriminals needs all the best talents available. That, of course, includes women. Yet they're woefully underrepresented in cybersecurity. The findings of surveys on female participation and progress in the tech industry are a stark reminder of how we must intensify efforts to boost inclusivity and create an equal learning and working environment. Although there is support for women from various quarters, the most influential architects of gender parity are educational institutions and employers.

Women in cybersecurity deal with pay and promotion discrimination, and find employers and classrooms non-inclusive

Historically, women have had fewer opportunities to enter the workforce than men. Even with increased social mobility, globalization, and digitization, women lack the same income opportunities as men. According to the World Bank, the labor force participation rate for women is slightly over 50% compared to 80% for their male counterparts, globally. Working women get paid less than their male colleagues.

Women who enter the STEM field haven't the environment or motivation to stick on. A study by Accenture and Girls Who Code showed that 50% of women leave technology careers by age 35 and that women quit their tech jobs at a 45% higher rate than men. Just 21% of women in the study believed that tech was a field they could thrive in, with the number falling to 8% for women of color.

Working for a non-inclusive company was cited as a major driver for leaving. The study noted that in a more inclusive environment, every employee is more likely to advance, with women being four times more likely to receive this benefit. A similar story also appeared to play out in halls of knowledge; women are more likely to continue studying tech programs if they feel supported in classrooms. Sadly, the environment in which they can feel safe and be themselves is lacking.

Marked disparities in pay and promotion are behind women's exit from technical roles. A McKinsey & Company's survey found that only 52 women in technical roles are promoted to manager for every 100 men at the same level. The reason for men gaining an upper hand was organizations' failure to retain women in the early stages of their careers, which meant fewer women were being prepared to step into senior roles. On the bright side, some of the companies said they were monitoring the advancement of women in the early years of their careers.

Discrimination in pay is also evident. A workplace study by (ISC)², a global non-profit organization in cybersecurity training, found that 32% of men in cybersecurity have an annual salary of $50,000-$100,000 while only 18% of women in this field get paid the same. Women are also underrepresented in the $100,000-$500,000 income bracket. Overall, women in ICT jobs earn less than their male peers. In Europe, the gender pay gap in ICT is 20%.

Women may have it easier in the cybercriminal underground

Cybercrime forums could be more hospitable places for women proficient in the darker aspects of cyber knowledge. A study by Trend Micro offers some clues - it notes that where, earlier, female hackers were less accepted by the hacker community, gender identity has come to matter a lot less over the years. One reason could be a fear of expulsion from forums for harassing or bullying members. But by and large, the cybercriminal underground appears to practice gender neutrality in their hiring process, with job ads and affiliate postings emphasizing skill. Even so, women are generally favored for social engineering, money laundering, and romance schemes requiring images and voice.

A lack of female tech talent is a loss for the cybersecurity industry

Today's global economy grapples with a shortage of cybersecurity experts. By 2025, there will be 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs open globally. Increasing female participation can help close the gap.

The gender divide in cybersecurity has consequences for an industry being challenged to use new tactics and diverse skills to tackle cybercrime, which an inclusive workforce is better equipped to provide. Diverse teams have been seen to outperform homogeneous ones on various parameters, including innovation, profitability, and employee engagement. The most gender-diverse teams are 48% more likely to outperform the least gender-diverse companies. By bridging the pay gap and providing equal opportunities for career advancement, employers can hope to retain more of their talented women cybersecurity professionals and reap the rewards that diversity brings.

Women bring the valuable skill of emotional intelligence to their workplace. While emotional intelligence is not unique to women, they tend to excel in this area and exemplify it more frequently at work. The quality makes them well-suited to leadership roles, in which higher levels of emotional intelligence are correlated to better team performance and employee engagement.

Women cybersecurity professionals have support from various quarters

A number of initiatives exist to help women make inroads into the tech industry. Cisco's Skills for All program offers free online courses in cybersecurity to help learners gain employable skills. Examples of non-profits aiming to help women enter the cybersecurity industry and close the gender gap include large organizations with global reach (Women in Cybersecurity, Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu, etc.) and Women Cyber Force in Luxembourg.

Women Cyber Force brings together cybersecurity professionals of different nationalities, education, and backgrounds aspiring to mentor and support women interested in ICT careers. Members have networking opportunities and abide by a code of helping one another. The overarching goal of the non-profit is to tackle the gender problem in cybersecurity and champion diversity in the sector.

While gender balance in cybersecurity is some way off, the hope is that more allies, advocates, and enablers will emerge to inspire girls and women to pursue their passion for technology. Businesses that step up efforts in creating a representative workforce will reap the rewards of diversity. With pressure from shareholders and regulators, there's no reason why we cannot make great strides in achieving gender equality in cybersecurity.