San Diego to Capitalize on Demand for Cybersecurity

SAN DIEGO—A new economic impact analysis and workforce study on cybersecurity in San Diego reveals the strong economic impact of the cybersecurity industry to San Diego’s growth. The study was conducted by The Cyber Center of Excellence , powered by San Diego Regional EDC , CBRE Research , and BW Research Partnership .

Michael Combs, CBRE

San Diego’s entrepreneurial environment has fostered startups to multinational companies in cybersecurity, software development, information technology, communications and defense. The business community includes incubators, financiers, experienced service providers and non-profits that support more than 100 firms focused exclusively on cybersecurity. In addition, the proximity of research and development facilities to Northern Mexico’s manufacturing hubs allows for the development of quick-to-market products. Industry leaders, Qualcomm, ESET, ViaSat, iboss and Northrop Grumman are located in San Diego. “We are seeing strong momentum in the cybersecurity industry, as companies continue to expand their operations in the region,” said Michael Combs , research manager at CBRE in San Diego. “Companies are becoming more global and working with a more diverse mix of customers beyond government and tech, increasing the positive economic impact on the region’s economy.” San Diego’s universities and colleges annually graduate 3,000 students in the computer science and engineering fields and recently launched two new cybersecurity masters’ programs at University of San Diego and California State University San Marcos . They also support cutting-edge research through resources like the Super Computing Center at UC San Diego and the Advanced Computing Environments Laboratory at San Diego State University . San Diego’s universities annually receive $1 billion in philanthropic and federal funding for research and development projects. San Diego’s Navy’s Space & Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), directly employs nearly half of all the cybersecurity jobs in San Diego (3,400) and its presence in San Diego is a huge contributing factor for many cyber companies to remain located in San Diego. SPAWAR’s total budget in FY15 was $6.8 billion , with $5 billion (74%) going to private industry contracts, with the San Diego region receiving over $1.1 billion. Other Key Findings:   * 7,620 direct cyber jobs in San Diego, a 14.7 percent increase *  16,580 total jobs impacted, a 25 percent increase *  13% projected cyber employment growth in the next year compared to projected 2 percent overall regional job growth *  $1.9 billion total economic impact (This impact is greater than hosting four Super Bowls or 14 Comic-Cons each year) * 18.8% growth for tech professional from 2011-2015, three times the average occupation in San Diego *Since 2014 EDC San Diego Cybersecurity Economic Impact Study The study was sponsored by Bank of America, ESET , and Sentek Global . Click here for the full study.