The FBI can’t get enough cyb
ersecurity agents to join its ranks.
Demand for those workers is at an all-time high – and that’s putting government organizations like the FBI in tough competition to recruit people with the skills to battle cybercrime.
The FBI is seeking to hire another 1000 agents to its cyber division by 2016, plus 1000 analysts, and the US Department of Defense wants to add another 4000 cybersecurity specialists this year, according to BloombergBusinessweek.
It seems that the US government is hoping the allure of high-tech crimefighting and appeals to patriotism will turn the tide.
A press release on the FBI’s website says trained IT workers are at the top of the agency’s most wanted talent list – while an ad pointing to a job listing for cyber special agents says: “Join the FBI Cyber Team and be the best at what you do.”
In a video released by the agency on YouTube, Robert Anderson, Jr., executive assistant director for the Bureau’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch, talks up the FBI’s mission.
“I do think the biggest thing [we] can offer to anyone that comes to work at the FBI is the mission and the scale of investigations,” Anderson said.
As computer crime and the threat from hackers seeps into every aspect of the agency’s mission, from investigating financial crimes and fighting cybercrime gangs, to protecting the US from acts of terrorism and espionage, there’s clearly a need for agents with IT skills.
Anderson said:
Cyber permeates every aspect of what we do, whether it's counterterrorism, criminal investigations, or traditional cyber attacks, as we've seen in the recent past. That's why these type of people are so important to get into the pipeline and come into our organization.
The FBI is struggling to overcome several disadvantages in the race for technically skilled workers, including a salary gap, and strict job requirements such as US citizenship.
The list of requirements in a job posting for cyber special agents is intimidating – including 19 weeks of boot-camp-style training at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
There’s also the requirement that applicants not be marijuana users for at least three years, which FBI Director James Comey has said is a hindrance on recruitment.
To build a workforce to meet future demands, organizations like the FBI have little choice but to build it from the ground up, and that means recruiting and training from a very young age.
In the UK, the government has cited the need for cybersecurity education in schools, providing teaching materials for students as young as 11.
The US government is offering full scholarships through a program called CyberCorps – similar to scholarship programs run by the US for recruiting soldiers and teachers.
As Sophos Global Head of Security Research James Lyne pointed out in his list of top cybersecurity trends for 2015, the enormous global skills gap for trained IT security professionals means governments especially will feel the pinch as they compete with private companies for a small pool of workers.
Can organizations like the FBI keep up with companies willing to pay skilled hackers big bucks to work in the private sector?
It’s a great time for students and others thinking about pursuing a cybersecurity career.
Image of Man looking through binoculars courtesy of Shutterstock.
Anonymous
It sounds to me like they need to re-examine their own policies and culture. What’s the point of a 19-week boot camp for someone who’s just going to sit behind a computer every day?
John Zorabedian
The boot camp is only for the “special agents (cyber)” – all of whom are trained like other special agents at the FBI Academy and need to carry a gun. The analyst jobs sounds more like the desk job.
Andy
No only is the FBI competing against the private sector, it’s competing against other alphabet agencies that are conducting similar investigations. It would be much more helpful if these agencies had a clearly defined role and the overlap was ended. The overlap is a waste of resources.
John Zorabedian
Thanks for pointing that out. According to Businessweek, the NSA is the FBI’s biggest competitor for graduates from the CyberCorps program.
Atombath
As a talented and ethical American why would I work for the government and help erode the privacy/security rights of those at home and abroad while taking a pay cut, having to relocate, and having to take drug tests? Then there is the political bureaucracy that is worse than corporate bureaucracy, where I am not only affected by the whims of those in charge but also a broken American political system where I might be laid off simply because Congress doesn’t want to pass an appropriations bill.
No. Unfortunately, the powers that be will have to rely on their usual methods of recruitment… that is, lock up some curious troublemaker for their adult life. Then give them an opportunity to work off their term of enslavement…er, I mean their debt to society… by working for our agencies.
On the other hand, Russia turns a blind eye to these misanthropes as long as they do not attack domestic targets. Every week I react to minor Russian threats and I feel that their form of cyber-privateers is working well.
Westin
I would have actually considered applying for the FBI however they discriminate by age and state that 37 is the oldest a person can be to become an agent. Why is the FBI allowed to do age discrimination?
Laurence Marks
if you read the entire job posting you will see that all FBI jobs have mandatory retirement at age 57 after 20 years of service. Do the math.
Lori the Martian
Just another reason why they will never have the best cyber security specialists working for them. The best ones are all over 40. :)
Lee
Not all the best as I’m sure you will have some talented youngsters but I think they are missing out by not recruiting older people as you will have some pretty talented and knowledgeable people.
You Already Know
Agreed, and just to follow up on a slightly different angle, a lot of folks in IT get into their 40s and realize what a pointless and unrewarding profession it can be. After doing this for over 20 years I can barely point to anything that I did which is still around and making a difference. It is the ultimate consumer profession with constant churn and replacement of, literally, yesterday’s work.
I’m looking to do something more meaningful than just pay the bills. If the FBI truly had insights into human behavior they would know this by now and recruit accordingly. I think it’s why you will see more and more disillusioned IT workers turn to cyber crime as a way to ply their trade for something personally meaningful, even if it is just to get rich or protest against the establishment. Just a hunch.
roy jones jr
I do know some folks willing to try to apply for those positions. But relocating and assurance & transparency of keeping the job is heavily considered.