In Russian businesses, the demand for white hackers as full-time employees has increased.
Starting the year, Russia has witnessed a 20% increase in job vacancies for cybersecurity specialists known as "white-hat hackers" or "penetration testers." These experts help identify vulnerabilities in the nation's information infrastructure, surpassing the number of such positions for the same period in 2024. However, experts have pointed out that the demand for such professionals has been even higher in the past year, with companies seeking them not only in open sources but also in targeted recruitments.
Julia Voronova, director of consulting at Positive Technologies, noted that this rise is due to the changing cyber threat landscape and digitalization efforts, which heighten the vulnerability of IT infrastructure and business processes to cyberattacks. One effective method for assessing security, she added, is through penetration testing.
Most frequently, pentesters are sought by IT companies and organizations specializing in financial technologies. The proposed salary ranges from 225,000 rubles, a slight increase from last year's 220,000. In many job postings, employers do not specify the exact level of remuneration and are willing to discuss compensation with potential candidates.
Over the course of a year, salaries for these specialists have risen on average by 8%. The minimum pay starts at 80,000 rubles in St. Petersburg and 100,000 rubles in Moscow. Among applicants, 99% are male, with a median age of 31, and more than half have a higher education.
Interest isn't limited to pentesters but also extends to other forms of ethical hacking such as Bug Bounty programs. In the past six months, there has been a sharp rise in demand for these cyber testing initiatives through platforms.
On Standoff Bug Bounty, the user base has grown more than three-fold over the past year and a half. The maximum reward reaches nearly 4 million rubles, while the average payment for a detected vulnerability is 58,000 rubles.
In a related development, Ural Federal University opened a laboratory of cybersecurity in September 2024. Here, joint exercises are conducted between Red Team and Blue Team. This method of evaluating cybersecurity involves one team simulating a breach, intrusion, or destructive actions on an information system, while the other team defends the data, creates backups, and identifies the perpetrators. Employers and producers of security solutions also test their products on the same platform.
This ongoing digital conflict against Russia, especially since the invasion of Ukraine, has significantly impacted the IT sector, leading to the strengthening of domestic cyber capabilities and increased demand for cybersecurity expertise to defend against both internal and foreign cyberattacks.
- Given the rising demand for cybersecurity specialists in Russia and the ongoing digital conflict, it's crucial for education and self-development platforms to offer technology-related courses in cybersecurity, such as penetration testing, to prepare a larger pool of White-hat hackers and penetration testers.
- Amidst the surge in job vacancies for cybersecurity experts, it's fascinating to observe the growth of Bug Bounty programs, which demonstrate the importance of news and technology in promoting ethical hacking and fostering a culture of cybersecurity education and self-development.
