A large portion of the workforce working in the cybersecurity field in the Philippines is feeling burned out, according to a report by cybersecurity solutions firm Sophos and Tech Research Asia (TRA).
The report titled “The Future of Cybersecurity in Asia Pacific and Japan” states that 94 percent of cybersecurity and IT professionals in the Philippines suffer from fatigue and burnout, which is the highest in the region.
Via Tech Research Asia (TRA), the research was participated by 919 respondents, from across Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, Japan, India, and Australia.
With the effect seemingly pervading different aspects of the field’s operations, 36 percent admitted getting hampered in their roles. Meanwhile, 11 percent say that the burnout is caused by actual breaches. However, overall, 88 percent said that they experienced burnout over the past year.
Per the report, the following are the key factors that led to fatigue and burnout:
- Lack of resources related to cybersecurity activities.
- Overwhelming responses from systems and tools.
- Repetitive tasks.
- Increased pressure from the management.
- An increasing level of threats and the imperative to adopt new technologies.
According to Sophos’ field CTO Aaron Bugal, the report highlights the pressing need for organizations to provide backup to their cybersecurity workforce. Additionally, he said that the effect of burnout does not only influence the workforce’s performance and stability in their roles. But also the likelihood of breaches.
More specifically, the negative effects of burnout go beyond the individual professionals as follows:
- Delayed responses suffered by 19 percent of companies.
- Stress-related resignations from 45 percent of companies.
- Loss of 4.6 hours per week of productivity.
- Cause of 11 percent of breaches.