GCHQ seeks teenage girls to join cyber security fight - Comment from Fujitsu
January 2017 by Fujitsu
In light of the news that GCHQ has announced it is launching a competition with the aim of encouraging more girls to think about a career in cyber security, Catherine Irvine, Senior Business and Development Manager, Security Operations Centre, UK and Ireland at Fujitsu, comments:
"There’s no denying that there are not enough women in cyber security. This is
partly due to the lack of awareness by women of the opportunities that exist, and
the perception that women don’t belong in security industries has become
institutionalised. We need to remove those barriers, and greater awareness of these
opportunities needs to be part of their formative experiences at school; so it’s
great to see GCHQ launching an initiative to encourage more girls to think about
following a career in cyber security.
"That said, more still needs to be done to attract women into these roles and as
such, it’s important that other organisations recognise their responsibility to
combating barriers to women who are looking to enter into technical professions.
It’s also key for women in cyber security to share their own stories and insights as
to what security is really like as a profession, so other women can start to see it
as an accessible profession that brings significant career choices and
opportunities. Casting the industry in this light starts brings to life the purpose
of cyber security inspiring other women to join the industry."