According to Silicon Republic, EY Ireland’s Cyber Leaders Index surveyed 165 senior cybersecurity professionals between July and August 2024 and found that 83% of Irish organizations enhanced their cybersecurity measures in the past six months. Despite this progress, 72% struggle to fund company-wide cyber training, and 43% face budget challenges for hiring and retaining skilled personnel. The report also revealed that 48% of leaders identified AI and data security as key priorities, but 44% can’t secure adequate budget for AI security initiatives. Additionally, 37% of respondents expressed concern about gaps in their organization’s cyber risk coverage, and more than one in four reported negative impacts on their mental health due to job pressures.
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The People Problem Nobody Wants To Solve
Here’s the thing about cybersecurity – you can buy all the fancy tech in the world, but if your team is burned out or untrained, you’re basically building a castle with no one to guard the gates. The numbers don’t lie: companies are spending on technology but starving their people budgets. And that’s creating a dangerous imbalance.
Think about it – 72% can’t fund proper training? In an environment where threats evolve daily? That’s like sending soldiers into battle without teaching them how to use their weapons. Meanwhile, the talent retention problem means the few experts you do have are constantly being poached or burning out. It’s a vicious cycle that leaves organizations perpetually vulnerable.
The AI Budget Gap Is Getting Scary
Nearly half of cybersecurity leaders see AI security as a priority, but almost the same percentage can’t get budget for it. That’s a massive disconnect between what companies say they need and what they’re actually funding. AI is transforming both attacks and defenses simultaneously, creating a whole new battlefield.
So we’re in this weird situation where everyone knows AI security is critical, but the money isn’t following the rhetoric. Meanwhile, threat actors aren’t waiting for budget approvals – they’re already weaponizing AI tools. This feels like watching two different races happening at completely different speeds.
Burnout Is The Hidden Cyber Risk Nobody Talks About
When more than a quarter of cybersecurity professionals report negative mental health impacts, we’ve got a serious problem. Burnout doesn’t just mean someone takes a sick day – it means missed alerts, slower response times, and ultimately, breaches. The constant pressure of defending against non-stop threats is taking a real human toll.
And here’s the kicker – this isn’t just a “nice to have” wellness issue anymore. As EY’s Puneet Kukreja noted, stress is becoming a material business risk. When your best people are exhausted and looking for the exit, your entire security posture crumbles. Yet how many companies actually treat team welfare as seriously as they treat their firewall configurations?
What Happens When The Training Gap Meets AI?
Look, we’re heading toward a perfect storm. Under-trained teams facing AI-powered attacks with insufficient budgets? That’s a recipe for disaster. The compliance pressures aren’t helping either – 39% of leaders are worried about meeting regulations like NIS2 while trying to fight actual threats.
The solution isn’t just throwing more money at technology. Companies need to recognize that their cybersecurity strength depends on their people first. Proper training, realistic workloads, competitive compensation – these aren’t expenses, they’re investments in not getting hacked. Because at the end of the day, the most sophisticated security tool in the world is useless if the person using it is too burned out to care.
