Government seeks info-security pros with C&A expertise in 2010, survey finds

(ISC)2, the non-profit organization that trains and credentials security professionals worldwide, with more than 71,000 credentials issued to 66,000 members in more than 135 countries, has surveyed nearly 3,000 information security pros for its 2010 career impact survey.

Federal agencies remain focused on complying with certification and accreditation (C&A) mandates required by the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) and other government regulations, the organization notes.

Therefore, “agencies continue to largely seek out information security professionals with C&A knowledge and experience,” according to (ISC)2.

According to the survey, “60 percent of federal managers plan to hire new information security professionals in 2010, and 61 percent of those are looking for expertise in C&A. Just over 43 percent of respondents said they were seeking recruits who are well-versed in information risk management.”

 “The use of continuous monitoring and risk management to replace the C&A process is likely the future, but the results of this survey show that the future isn’t here yet,” Marc Noble, (ISC)2 director of government affairs, said in statement. “Agencies remain bound by the policies that are still in place and are hiring accordingly.”

Overall, in an administration that has elevated cyber-security to homeland-security priority, the job outlook for information security professionals within the federal government remains strong, according to (ISC)2. “Of the 175 respondents who identified themselves as having hiring responsibilities, nearly 61 percent said they were looking to hire permanent and / or contract employees in 2010. Of those hiring, more than half (50.9 percent) said they will be hiring three or more information security professionals this year.”

In addition, almost 75 percent of government respondents reported salary increases in 2009, while 19.3 percent reported that their incomes stayed the same, while just five percent of respondents experienced a cut in their salary or benefits last year.