ABSTRACT

Current selection systems in cybersecurity tend to pick candidates based on existing knowledge of cybersecurity concepts and procedures. As part of a larger study designed to create an aptitude test for cyber operations, we surveyed a sample of students and community members to determine their cybersecurity knowledge, cognitive abilities, and demographic characteristics. We found that the best prediction for cybersecurity knowledge came from a background in computer science, identifying as a gamer, and general academic ability. The top 25% of candidates on cybersecurity knowledge were not as diverse as the top 25% of candidates on ability measures, however. This finding shows that selection based only on cybersecurity knowledge may systematically overlook talented candidates.