SAN FRANCISCO --(Business Wire)-- Apr 21, 2009 More than 70 percent of 1,500 U.S.-based information security professionals responding to a survey say their budgets were reduced the past six months due to the economic downturn, while 55 percent said they did not expect any additional cuts for the remainder of the year.

The Web-based survey was sent to members of (ISC)^2® (“ISC-squared”), the world’s largest organization of information security professionals and the not-for-profit global leader in educating and certifying information security professionals throughout their careers. (ISC)² is keeping the survey open to its members through May 15 when final results will be disclosed.

Mirroring the security budget responses, more than 70 percent of survey respondents believe the economic downturn has had a somewhat or significant impact on their purchases of security equipment and technology; however, 53 percent said spending would not decrease for the remainder of 2009.

On the personnel side, roughly half of survey respondents said their information security departments had experienced at least one lay-off in the past few months. Fifty-five percent said no additional personnel cuts would be forthcoming the remainder of the year.

Of the nearly third of respondents who identified themselves as having hiring responsibilities, 44 percent said they were looking to hire additional information security staff this year. The areas of expertise most sought after by those seeking candidates were information risk management, operations security, certification and accreditation, security management practices, and security architecture and models.

To assist information security professionals seeking positions or looking to charter their careers in a challenging economy, (ISC)², in collaboration with RSA Conference 2009, is sponsoring a Career Management Clinic for attendees of the conference in San Francisco this Thursday, April 23 from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the Purple Room 305 in the Moscone Center.

Representatives of two national recruiting firms – Alta Associates and LJ Kushner & Associates -- will conduct an interactive workshop that will help match information security professionals to job opportunities and provide tips on career planning, resumes, interviewing and other activities to enhance their career prospects.

“The current economic conditions have had an effect on all professions, including information security,” said Lee Kushner, president of LJ Kushner & Associates. “By participating in the (ISC)² career clinic at the RSA Conference, we are hoping to provide guidance and clarity to those whose careers have been negatively affected.”

The Career Management Clinic is the first in a series of global workshops (ISC)² is planning to assist information security professionals during the economic downturn. The next career workshop is scheduled for April 29, 2009 at Infosecurity Europe in London.

“(ISC)² is dedicated to helping our members throughout their careers, and that includes during difficult economic times,” said W. Hord Tipton, CISSP-ISSEP, CAP, CISA, executive director of (ISC)². “We hope our career clinics help our certified members as well as others in the profession better navigate their careers in a challenging job market.”

Tipton noted that (ISC)² also offers free resume posting and job alerts to its certified members on its Career Center (www.isc2.org/careers). Employers can post jobs and search resumes for free as well, giving them a direct line to an audience of qualified information security professionals.

Note to Editors: RSA 2009, Booth #352

About (ISC)²

The International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium, Inc. [(ISC)^2®] is the globally recognized Gold Standard for certifying information security professionals. Celebrating its 20^th anniversary, (ISC)² has now certified over 60,000 information security professionals in more than 130 countries. Based in Palm Harbor, Florida, USA, with offices in Washington, D.C., London, Hong Kong and Tokyo, (ISC)² issues the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP^®) and related concentrations, Certified Secure Software Lifecycle Professional (CSSLP^CM), Certification and Accreditation Professional (CAP^®), and Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP^®) credentials to those meeting necessary competency requirements. (ISC)² CISSP and related concentrations, CAP, and the SSCP certifications are among the first information technology credentials to meet the stringent requirements of ANSI/ISO/IEC Standard 17024, a global benchmark for assessing and certifying personnel. (ISC)² also offers a continuing professional education program, a portfolio of education products and services based upon (ISC)²’s CBK^®, a compendium of information security topics, and is responsible for the (ISC)² Global Information Security Workforce Study. More information is available at www.isc2.org.

© 2009, (ISC)² Inc. (ISC)², CISSP, ISSAP, ISSMP, ISSEP, CAP, SSCP and CBK are registered marks and CSSLP is a service mark of (ISC)², Inc.

Maples Communications, Inc.
Stephanie Olsen or Mike Kilroy
949-855-3555
solsen@maples.com
mkilroy@maples.com