Almost all Australian organisations are facing cyber security skills gaps, with artificial intelligence and identity-based attacks among the biggest challenges, according to new research from Barracuda Networks.
The company’s Cybersecurity Skills Gap Report found 94 per cent of Australian respondents reported skills shortages, with 68 per cent citing AI-related risks and the same proportion struggling with advanced identity and phishing threats, including business email compromise, OAuth abuse, and multifactor authentication bypass.
Security teams are also struggling to keep pace with expanding business demands. More than half of respondents (52 per cent) said they were expected to support growing digital operations without additional resources, while 64 per cent said their teams were struggling to scale with changing business needs.
Nearly a quarter said they could protect their organisations only reactively rather than proactively.
“The findings show how the impact of AI is changing the cyber security landscape faster than many security teams can build the necessary skills, visibility, and governance,” Siroui Mushegian, Barracuda’s senior vice president and chief information officer, said in a statement.
“Organisations need to reshape their security teams, combining the power of AI and automation with human expertise, judgement, and visibility. We must nurture these critical skills in the next generation of cyber security professionals, building new development pathways and opportunities for hands-on experience.”
AI is already reshaping security workforces, with 84 per cent of organisations reporting an impact on roles or headcount. Sixty-four per cent reported workforce reductions linked to AI, with entry-level positions affected more often than senior roles – 45 per cent compared with 33 per cent.
However, human oversight remains central to incident response. Almost two-thirds of organisations (65 per cent) use shared decision-making models in which AI supports investigation and analysis while people retain responsibility for judgement and final decisions.
Six in 10 respondents said they needed additional expertise in incident response, high-pressure decision making and risk management. Meanwhile, 67 per cent reported skills needs in strategic security leadership, including AI governance and translating technical risks into business impact.
The international survey, commissioned by Barracuda and conducted by Arlington Research, covered 2,000 IT and security decision-makers across organisations with 100 to 2,000 employees, including 200 respondents in Australia.
You can read the full report here.
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