March 4, 2025
Despite record high cybersecurity breaches, and 2024 cybercrime losses nearing $10T, many small & medium-sized businesses (SMBs) fail to establish cybersecurity best practices. There are many reasons why cybersecurity is a blind spot for SMBs, including beliefs in several convenient myths that remove all risk. One that we often hear is the belief that more is being done each day to help make American businesses more resilient, and altogether avoid these issues. However, the US Government is not responding as you might guess to increased risk and cyber warfare, and it’s creating bigger problems in an already tough industry.
It’s hard enough being a full-time cybersecurity professional in today’s world of unimaginable threats. Long hours & job burnout are common issues amongst cybersecurity professionals, who are often compared to air traffic controllers. But now, new threats loom larger for Federal Employees; Reliable jobs.
The United States is shredding its cyber infrastructure. Well reported shock-and-awe firings are presently unleashing turmoil in the Federal cybersecurity workforce. These mass layoffs of public-sector cybersecurity professionals are big new issues that stack on top of broader industry problems of overworked and understaffed teams.
There is increased risk concerning several industry experts that we’re opening up national intelligence to the highest bidder. Data rich federal systems are extremely lucrative targets of bad actors, who will pay enormous compensation for it.
“Government databases are extremely complicated and also old, in addition to being full of people’s private information,” Meredith Broussard, research director at the NYU Alliance for Public Interest Technology, recently told the press.
Art Zeile, CEO of tech career jobsite Dice (DHI Group), told Axios there has been a deficit of cybersecurity professionals in government for the last 10 years. “There’s no reason to shoot ourselves in the foot by incentivizing them to leave,” he said. Federal cybersecurity work is also unique. Zeile claims that CISA told DHI in its first week to take all the open jobs off the platform “right now.” One of DHI’s hiring platforms specifically targets employees with federal security clearances.
That type of knowledge and this particular skillset can be very lucrative to some government cybersecurity professionals. This is particularly true for those who have just seen an entire career implode, and likely experiencing feelings of resentment.
What About Patriotism?It may feel strange that the US Government is not responding to increased cyber risk, and you may feel less safe. Some former government cybersecurity employees with strong feelings of American patriotism cite that as a motivator against the struggles they face. Today, many don’t fully understand what is happening with reshuffling of priorities and a new world order emerging. Overnight, the Cyber Operations of US Cyber Command was ordered to stand down operations against Russia. US Military Officials made the announcement, which has left several insider circles guessing where this is headed.
Uncertainty about where we are headed as a country isn’t entirely new. Flying solo is, so make sure you’re paying attention to this important problem.
Some security budgets are under scrutiny, and worker headcount is dropping. This may be leaving companies with increasingly unpatched, exploitable flaws in their systems. When a cybersecurity staff member leaves their job or a company freezes their headcount, the rest of the team have to pick up the slack. “This makes it difficult to get to everything”, said Mark Loveless, a security engineer at GitLab, during a recent press event. “It’s rough because, for those who are still doing this, the load is increasing,” Loveless added. “You’re going to end up with a little bit of burnout, and I’m seeing a bit of that already.”
Because the US Government is not responding to increased cyber risk, that means you’re on your own. Don’t be surprised to see increased activity amongst cybersecurity bad actors, particularly their new favorite targets… SMBs. Phishing & ransomware have been on the rise in recent years. Organizations would be wise to consider the following;
Assess Your Cyber Risks
Remediate Your Risks
Address Third-Party Risks
Seek The Right Insurance Coverage
