Nation faces "talent gap" in cybersecurity

[Photo:from VCG]

The training of cybersecurity talent is an urgent and important task for China's internet development.

According to Zhao Zeliang, director of cybersecurity coordination for the Cyberspace Administration of China, Cybersecurity talent is in short supply, "which presents us with a great challenge in preventing online attacks."

In his view, China can catch up with Western nations' cybersecurity protection by buying and learning their products and technologies. "But if our talent is insufficient, or we are unable to train talent, our internet development will face difficulties."

The country has more than 751 million netizens, but only produces around 8,000 cybersecurity graduates every year. Although educational efforts have increased since 2015, "the talent gap, obviously, is still large".

To effectively fill the gap, education bases are being established at five universities, including Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunication, Shanghai Jiaotong University and Sichuan University.

Meanwhile, the National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team and Coordination Center of China also encourages "white hats" - hackers who help companies identify security risks - by giving them rewards.

[The audio clip is from Studio+, produced by CRI]

(News source: China Daily)