India’s cybersecurity landscape is evolving rapidly amid a surge in digital adoption and cyber threats. From BFSI and healthcare to IT, telecom, and e-commerce, organisations are gearing up to secure their digital assets and customer data, which creates a huge demand for cybersecurity talents in the market.
This article explores the growing need for cybersecurity talent across sectors, in-demand job roles, salary trends, and educational pathways, shaping India’s expanding cybersecurity workforce.
The Rising Cybersecurity Threats and Talent Demand
The Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) handled nearly 1.59 million cybersecurity incidents in 2023, including website intrusions, malware, and phishing attacks. IBM X-Force recorded a 71% rise in the use of stolen credentials, which accounted for nearly 30% of global incidents. Government data shows that incidents rose sharply—from 10.29 lakh in 2022 to 22.68 lakh in 2024—highlighting a rapid expansion in cyber threats.
The financial toll from these cybersecurity threats has become considerably severe. High-value cyber-fraud cases (≥₹1 lakh) surged from 6,699 in FY2023 to 29,082 in FY2024, causing losses of about $20 million.
As threat volumes and financial losses mount, the demand for cybersecurity professionals is accelerating across industries. In BFSI, where cyber-fraud cases have risen sharply, banks and fintech firms are hiring SOC analysts, fraud investigators, and compliance experts to strengthen digital defences. The healthcare sector, now a $600 million cybersecurity market, has a huge demand for data privacy officers and medical-system security engineers to secure telemedicine and connected devices. The IT industry is expanding opportunities in cloud security, DevSecOps, and threat intelligence, while in telecom, the rollout of 5G and IoT networks has created demand for network-security roles. E-commerce platforms, facing escalating payment fraud, are strengthening their AppSec and fraud-detection teams.
Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, and Mumbai have emerged as India’s primary cybersecurity hiring hubs. Pune, Chennai, and tier-2 cities like Ahmedabad and Kochi are also emerging as active hiring centres, reflecting the widening landscape of India’s cybersecurity talent market.
Top 12 In-demand Cybersecurity Jobs
1. SOC / Security Analyst
Frontline defenders who monitor logs, triage alerts, and escalate incidents from SIEM and EDR platforms.
Required skills: SIEM (Splunk/QRadar), log analysis, TCP/IP, Linux/Windows admin, basic scripting (Python/Bash), and incident triage.
Average annual salary: ₹4.8 LPA
2.Incident Responder / Digital Forensics Analyst
Leads containment and investigation during breaches, performs forensic analysis, and prepares incident reports for remediation and legal needs.
Required skills: EDR tools (CrowdStrike/SentinelOne), disk/memory forensics, chain-of-custody procedures, root-cause analysis.
Average annual salary: ₹6.5 LPA
3. Penetration Tester / Ethical Hacker
Simulates attacks to identify vulnerabilities in applications and networks, produces remediation reports and security recommendations.
Required skills: Web/network pentesting, Burp Suite, Metasploit, exploit methodology, vulnerability reporting (OSCP/CEH familiarity).
Average annual salary: ₹7.1 LPA
4.Cloud Security Engineer
Designs and enforces security controls for AWS/Azure/GCP environments, secures IaC and container deployments, and implements cloud monitoring.
Required skills: Cloud IAM, KMS, cloud logging, Terraform security, Kubernetes/container hardening, cloud compliance.
Average annual salary: ₹10.9 LPA
5.DevSecOps / Secure Software Engineer
Integrates security into CI/CD pipelines, automates security testing, and ensures secure development practices across the SDLC.
Required skills: CI/CD tooling, SAST/DAST, dependency scanning, secrets management, secure coding (OWASP).
Average annual salary: ₹11.7 LPA
6.Application Security (AppSec) Engineer
Performs secure code reviews, threat modelling and vulnerability management to harden web and mobile applications.
Required skills: OWASP Top 10, SAST/DAST, static analysis, secure code review techniques, and remediation guidance.
Average annual salary: ₹10.4 LPA
7.Threat Intelligence / Threat Hunter
Analyzes adversary TTPs, hunts for stealthy intrusions, and produces actionable intelligence to improve detection and response.
Required skills: CTI frameworks, YARA, malware analysis basics, log enrichment, Python for automation, SOAR familiarity.
Average annual salary: ₹6.5 LPA
8.Identity & Access Management (IAM) Specialist
Designs and enforces access controls, SSO/PAM solutions and role-based policies to protect privileged accounts.
Required skills: SAML/OAuth/OIDC, PAM tools, Active Directory, RBAC design, privileged access governance.
Average annual salary: ₹10.6 LPA
9.Security Architect / Cloud Security Architect
Creates enterprise security architectures, threat models and zero-trust designs to align technical controls with business risk.
Required skills: Enterprise architecture, threat modelling, network/cloud design, governance frameworks, risk assessment.
Average annual salary: ₹24–25 LPA
10. Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) Specialist
Leads audits, policy creation and regulatory compliance (ISO 27001, PCI-DSS, data privacy), bridging security and business processes.
Required skills: Risk assessment, audit experience, ISO/PCI knowledge, policy writing, and vendor risk management.
Average annual salary: ₹7.8 LPA
11.Malware Analyst / Reverse Engineer
Dissects malicious binaries to understand payloads, capabilities and attribution, supporting detection and remediation efforts.
Required skills: Static/dynamic analysis, IDA/Ghidra, sandboxing, assembly basics, C/C++ familiarity.
Average annual salary: ₹7.7 LPA
12. CISO / Chief Information Security Officer
Defines security strategy, manages budget and governance, and communicates risk posture to executives and stakeholders.
Required skills: Security strategy, risk management, vendor selection, regulatory liaison, stakeholder communication.
Average annual salary: ₹37.5 LPA
Note: These salaries are approximate and are sourced from PayScale, Glassdoor and AmbitionBox.
Education and certifications
Cybersecurity education in India spans traditional, full-time degree programmes at leading universities and institutes, alongside a growing ecosystem of short-term professional certifications and hands-on lab platforms that enhance employability and skill development. Below are the top options job seekers can explore when planning their education.
Full-Time Degree Programmes
IIIT Hyderabad — M.Tech in Computer Science & Information Security
IIT Delhi — Interdisciplinary M.Tech in Cyber Security & Engineering (CSIA)
National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) — M.Sc. / M.Tech. in Cyber Security & Digital Forensics
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham — M.C.A. with Cyber Security specialisation / Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security
University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES) — B.Tech in Cyber Security & Digital Forensics
Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) — Post Graduate Diploma in Cyber Security & Forensics (PG-DCSF)
Short-Term Professional Certifications
CompTIA Security+ (Entry-level)
EC-Council CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker)
Offensive Security OSCP (Practical Penetration Testing)
(ISC)² CISSP & Entry Credentials
ISACA CISM / CISA (Governance & Audit)
AWS Certified Security – Speciality
Microsoft Azure Security Engineer (AZ-500)
Google Cloud – Professional Cloud Security Engineer
Virtual Learning Labs (Highly Recommended for building practical projects)
OffSec / Offensive Security Labs
India’s growing digital economy has made cybersecurity a major source of employment in today’s job market. As cyber threats evolve in various forms, the demand for skilled professionals is rising across all sectors—from banking and healthcare to telecom and e-commerce. Educational institutions and global certification bodies are bridging the talent gap through specialised degree programmes, hands-on labs, and industry-recognised credentials.
For emerging job seekers, cybersecurity now offers one of the most future-proof and rewarding career paths—combining technical challenge, social responsibility, and continuous learning in an ever-evolving digital environment.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why is cybersecurity becoming a critical priority in India?
2. Which sectors are driving the highest demand for cybersecurity professionals?
3. What are the most in-demand cybersecurity job roles in India?
4. Which cities are emerging as cybersecurity hiring hubs in India?
5. What are the best education and certification pathways to build a cybersecurity career?
