The cybersecurity skills gap is no longer just about filling open positions. Now, the challenge is how organizations can defend against an increasingly sophisticated, AI-powered threat landscape. The recently released Fortinet 2026 Cybersecurity Skills Gap Report reveals data that underscores how critical this challenge has become: 71% of organizations surveyed say the cybersecurity skills gap creates additional risk for their organization, and 86% experienced at least one breach in the past year. Regarding the breaches, more than half (56%) of the organizations attributed them in part to a lack of cybersecurity skills and trained IT security staff.

The report’s findings reinforce an important reality that the cybersecurity skills gap is no longer simply a workforce challenge; it’s a business challenge. As cybercriminals leverage AI to automate attacks and increase their speed and sophistication, organizations need cybersecurity professionals with the expertise to defend against them. Organizations that invest in the latest technology must also invest in the people who deploy, manage, and defend it.

Mind the Gap Because Cybersecurity Skills Are Now a Must-Have

The cybersecurity staffing issue is directly tied to business resilience. Without cybersecurity professionals with significant experience on staff, an organization’s resilience, business continuity, and executive accountability can be seriously impacted. The skills gap report reveals as much: Of those who were surveyed and experienced a breach last year, more than half (52%) say the breaches cost them more than $1 million and 20% of organizations report it took four to six months to recover from the cyberattack. Despite these impacts, only 44% of respondents identified defending against AI cybersecurity attacks as one of their top concerns. At the same time, 91% say they are already using or experimenting with AI-powered cybersecurity solutions.

Why Technology Alone Isn’t Enough

While the vast majority of survey respondents are continuing to invest in AI, automation, and security platforms, this new technology still depends on skilled individuals. These advanced AI tools must be seen as force multipliers, not as replacements for an entire team.

Generally speaking, the survey respondents have high hopes for AI-powered cybersecurity solutions but acknowledge that implementing them comes with its own set of challenges. The more AI products an organization implements, the more employees with advanced AI skills will be needed. And this leads us right back to the skills gap shortage.

Everyone Needs to Be AI Literate

All organizations today need to have AI literacy extend beyond their IT security team. IT staff, developers, and business leaders should all have a basic knowledge of how AI systems work, the risks they pose, and how to limit the risks. Building a knowledgeable workforce allows organizations to leverage the productivity and security benefits of AI while reducing the unintended consequences.

Cyber Resilience Requires Workforce Resilience

Organizations can help address the skills gap shortage by upgrading the knowledge and experience of their existing workforce by offering internal continuous learning, upskilling, and reskilling classes. They should also consider encouraging outside education opportunities that can lead to acquiring the appropriate education and certifications.

Strengthening employee cybersecurity expertise cannot be overstated because human beings are the leading cause of successful attacks. As cybercriminals increasingly use AI to scale phishing, credential theft, deepfakes, and social engineering, organizations need employees who can recognize and respond to these state-of-the-art cyberattacks.

The organizations making the most progress recognize that cybersecurity isn’t solely the responsibility of the security team. Workforce readiness is becoming a strategic priority across the business, requiring collaboration among security leaders, IT, HR, and executive leadership.

To strengthen workforce readiness, organizations are investing in security awareness training, continuous learning, professional development, and industry-recognized certifications. The Fortinet Training Institute and the Fortinet NSE Certification program are designed to help organization build, validate, and continuously develop cybersecurity skills across their workforces with security awareness training for their employees.

What Should Your Organization Do Today?

Organizations can no longer afford to think of cybersecurity skills as a hiring problem alone. Building cyber resilience requires continuous investment in people, technology, and learning. Those organizations that prioritize acquiring experienced cybersecurity professionals today will be better positioned to defend against tomorrow’s threats.

Organizations should assess cybersecurity skill gaps across their workforce and prioritize hiring professionals with deep expertise in both cybersecurity and AI. The challenge, however, is that these highly sought-after candidates are in short supply, making both recruitment and retention increasingly difficult.

Building a resilient cybersecurity workforce starts with understanding where the greatest gaps exist. But this is only the first step. For many organizations, the next hurdle is finding the resources and getting approval to hire or develop the talent they need, a challenge we’ll explore in our next blog.

Learn more: Explore Fortinet Training Institute programs and certification pathways to see how Fortinet is helping close the cyber skills gap through accessible training, upskilling, reskilling, and workforce development.