Why so many military veterans move into cybersecurity

Leading a foot patrol through an empty village in a conflict zone might seem a world away from working in a security operations centre (SOC) in a major enterprise.

But, says former infantryman James Murphy, when you see a trashcan by the side of the road, and you know no-one is collecting rubbish that day: "The spider hairs on the back of your neck start tingling."

And that vigilance, says Mr Murphy, now director of veterans and families at the Forces Employment Charity, is precisely the sort of instinct the cybersecurity industry covets.

Cyberattacks are a fact of life for organizations worldwide, whether straightforward cybercrime or politically motivated.

The UK's armed forces recently launched an accelerated training program for recruits to bolster its cyber capabilities, with successful candidates in line for one of the highest armed forces starting salaries.

But there has long been a steady march in the other direction.

In the UK, the Forces Employment Charity's TechVets programme typically helps 15 to 20 people a month into employment, with between 40 and 60% of those head into cybersecurity.

And that is a much needed supply of workers - there is a global shortfall of four million cyber professionals, according to the World Economic Forum.

The need for those workers has been underlined in the UK, where operations at two leading retailers have been disrupted by hackers.

The route between the military and cybersecurity is not always direct.

Interim chief information security officer Mo Ahddoud spent 10 years in the Royal Artillery, serving tours in Northern Ireland, Bosnia and before leaving in 1999.

The "natural transition" at the time was into other uniformed organizations, such as the police or the prison service.

However, he says: "I realized the world was changing." As part of his resettlement process, he took online courses in computer applications, then studied PC repair.

From there he moved into desk work, and found his way into cyber security, with organizations such as BAE Systems and Universal Studios.

Mr Ahddoud's military training has always informed his approach to cybersecurity. He recalls being told by an officer, that it's not so important how deep a solider can dig. "When you're being fired on, you'll have the motivation to dig a really big hole."

The real skill is dealing with problems, such as fixing broken supply chains, or coping when communications go down.

"That mindset was always around the process. How do you fix it":[]}