- Retailers risk millions if they fail to hire and train cybersecurity talent right now, report warns
- Cloud security engineers and SOC analysts are quietly becoming the backbone of digital defense
- Ethical hackers are no longer optional, they’re the frontline defense against today’s AI-driven threats
Effective malware protection demands more than passive defense, especially as recent cyberattacks on major UK retailers such as Marks & Spencer have reignited concerns about the ongoing cybersecurity talent shortage, a persistent and unresolved challenge.
New figures from recruitment platform Robert Walters claim these breaches are putting companies under pressure to hire and retain skilled cybersecurity professionals, particularly in areas like penetration testing and ethical hacking.
“Retailers have heavily invested in recent years to hire professionals who can assess their system security and identify vulnerabilities. Penetration testing and ethical hacking are among the most sought-after skills today,” said Phill Brown, Global Head of Market Intelligence at Robert Walters
AI-fueled cyber threats
This spike in demand is occurring alongside a broader expansion of the cybersecurity sector, which is expected to grow at around 12% annually.
Retailers and ecommerce firms account for 10% of current cybersecurity job vacancies, a figure that is likely to rise sharply.
Brown warns that regardless of investments, “companies who neglect the hiring and upskilling of cybersecurity staff risk lost profits, damaged reputations, diminished consumer trust, and vulnerability to future security breaches.”
Organisations are becoming increasingly aware that their current defensive posture may not be adequate, especially given the accelerating pace of threats driven by artificial intelligence.
Professionals who can secure cloud infrastructure, monitor threats in real-time, and proactively detect vulnerabilities have become critical.
Cloud Security Engineers, Security Operations Center (SOC) Analysts, AI and Threat Intelligence Analysts, and Cyber Risk Specialists top the list.
However, ethical hackers remain particularly valued, both for identifying weaknesses and stress-testing systems before actual attackers do.
As the AI threat matures, these roles become more central. It’s no longer sufficient to deploy the best antivirus or rely on the best endpoint protection platforms alone.
Cybersecurity strategy must now include dynamic and continuous testing, backed by human insight, to keep pace with adversaries who are increasingly leveraging machine learning themselves.
With around 17,000 live cybersecurity vacancies in the UK alone, and projected growth of 10–12% annually, the market faces a chronic shortfall.
The surge in demand is outpacing supply, and unless upskilling efforts accelerate, the workforce will struggle to meet the rising threats.
