Bridging the Cybersecurity Skills Gap: The REWIRE Project's Legacy and Future Pathways

30 Nov 2024

The Role Played by the CyberSecurityHub^cz

• Supporting the development of cybersecurity skills: CyberSecurityHub^cz has played a key role in providing expertise and advice in the field of cybersecurity. The organisation has been involved in the development and implementation of a methodology for assessing current skills needs and predicting new skills that will be required in the sector in the future.

• Collaboration on the development of the Cybersecurity Skills Framework: Collaboration on the development and testing of a skills framework for different professional roles in cybersecurity as part of a broader European strategy for cyber skills.

• Coordination of project activities and involvement in the federated training platform: CyberSecurityHub^cz has actively collaborated in the development and piloting of a federated cyber training platform to test and train professionals on cyber threat simulations.

The Relevance of This Project for CyberSecurityHub^cz

• Increased professional capacity and awareness of cybersecurity: the REWIRE project has enabled CyberSecurityHub^cz to expand its professional capacity and raise awareness of the importance of cyber security in the wider community, including public institutions, educational institutions and corporate sectors.

• Supporting organisational development and growth: participation in this project has provided the Hub with access to new methodologies, tools and skills prediction tools that can be used to develop its education and training programmes. The project has also contributed to strengthening its international network and collaboration with leading organisations in the field of cybersecurity.

• Strategic connection to European initiatives and policies: by participating in the REWIRE project, the organisation has become part of a wider European initiative to address cyber skills challenges. This has strengthened its role in shaping European policies, strategies and tools for cybersecurity.

• Opportunities for the development of new projects and initiatives: active participation in the development of the European Cybersecurity Skills Strategy and the opportunity for collaboration with other leading organisations has provided CyberSecurityHub^cz with valuable contacts for future collaborations and projects aimed at training and developing cybersecurity professionals.

In the past 4 years, REWIRE built a Blueprint for the Cybersecurity industry and a concrete European Cybersecurity Skills Strategy. This strategy took into consideration lessons learned from other initiatives (i.e. CONCORDIA, SPARTA, ECHO, CyberSec4Europe), outlining, from a holistic approach, political, economic, social, technological, legal, and other factors which affected sector skills and training offers. Encompassed with activities, milestones, outcomes, and outputs, REWIRE did: 

• • Design and implementation of a Blueprint for the Cybersecurity industry ➢ Develop a European Cybersecurity Skills Strategy
• • Develop a common methodology for the assessment of the current situation and to anticipate future needs, through identification of existing and emerging skills needs.
• • Create a European Cybersecurity Skills Observatory integrated by specific actions, activities and tools that allow for anticipation and matching of skills supply and demands. ➢ Support the strategy and framework through the implementation of a digital on-line publicly accessible European Cybersecurity Skills Digital Observatory – CyberABILITY (for cybersecurity skills merging the market needs, the profiles, the competencies and the available training courses).
• • Create a Cybersecurity Skills Framework containing profiles for the needed cybersecurity profiles and their analysis.
• • Pilot a federated cyber range hosted by multiple project partners to support the goals of the project.
• • Create at least four (4) educational curricula and relevant skills certification schemes for profiles contained in the Cybersecurity Skills Framework.
• • Promote the attractiveness of the sector and gender balance through specific actions to engage all relevant stakeholders
• • Develop actions for encouraging mobility through promoting the use of existing European tools (Erasmus+, EURES, EAfA etc.).
• • Create networks to improve skills intelligence and information mechanisms and strengthen the exchange of knowledge and practice between the cybersecurity industry and the VET providers, adapting VET provision to the skills needs demanded by the sector.

The REWIRE Final Conference, held on November 21, 2024, in Brussels, showcased the project’s outcomes and provided a platform for discussing ongoing challenges in cybersecurity skills. Stakeholders, including European policymakers, industry associations, educational providers, and non-profits, came together to explore these challenges, identify opportunities, and propose solutions for cybersecurity education and workforce development. The conference also raised awareness, facilitated dialogue, and fostered collaboration among stakeholders to advance cybersecurity workforce development and enhance societal resilience against emerging threats.

📷 Photo credit: Michele Pasquale/EfVET ​[Full photo album]
License: CC BY-NC-SA
Info:creativecommons.org