Cybersecurity Burnout Costing Firms $700m+ Annually

British and US enterprises may be throwing away as much as $756m each year through lost productivity due to burned-out cybersecurity staff, according to a new study from Hack The Box.

The skills specialist calculated the sum by first working out the average daily wage for cybersecurity professionals, using Infosecurity Institute figures.

It then used its own stats revealing the average number of sick days taken per year per worker (3.4) and average number of days lost to poor productivity (5.1), assuming an eight-hour working day. The figures were then extrapolated out according to the number of cybersecurity professionals in the US and UK, and total number of days lost.

Hack The Box claimed UK employers may be losing a combined $130m annually, while their US counterparts could be down by as much as $626m due to lost productivity.

The research pointed the blame squarely at employee burnout. It claimed 84% of responding cybersecurity professionals are experiencing stress, fatigue and burnout due to the rapid pace of technological change, mounting threat volumes and being forced to perform outside their skillset.

It added that three-quarters (74%) have taken time off due to work-related mental well-being problems.

Read more on burnout: Stress and Burnout Affecting Majority of Cybersecurity Professionals

Interestingly, 90% of CISOs globally said they are concerned about the impact of stress, fatigue and burnout on their security team’s well-being, versus just 47% of CEOs.

“What we’ve discovered shows just how difficult the job is and that there is a significant gap of understanding between the board and the professionals,” said Haris Pylarinos, CEO at Hack The Box.

“We’re calling for business leaders to work more closely with cybersecurity professionals to make mental well-being a priority and actually provide the solutions they need to succeed. It’s not just the right thing to do, it makes business sense.”