Washington, DC has positioned itself as the center of the cybersecurity industry with a projected 41% increase in cyber-related employment by 2028. With proximity to government agencies, private sector contractors, and the world’s most highly trained cybersecurity workforce, Washington, DC provides direct access to the ecosystem cybersecurity firms need to thrive.
From WDCEP’s Cybersecurity Sector Overview, published 2023. The underlying data is 2021–2023.
How DC ranks
- #4 market for top tech talent in North America — CBRE, 2023
- Most Innovative State — WalletHub, 2023
- #1 city for cybersecurity jobs — TechShielder, 2022
- 41% projected increase in cyber-related employment by 2028 — CyberSeek
Federal connections and proximity to legislators
Washington, DC provides the unique advantage of being the seat of the federal government. Unparalleled proximity allows for direct access to the nearly 438 federal government agencies in the region. Washington, DC-based companies received over $26 billion in federal contracts across FY22–FY23 for cyber-related projects.
Source: USAspending.gov, 2023, NAICS 541512, 541519, 541611 and 541990, District of Columbia.
Talent
Over 6,000 degrees were awarded to students in cyber-related fields in 2021, ensuring a steady stream of graduates prepared to work in the industry. These include graduates of highly specialized cyber programs such as the University of Maryland Cyber Security Center, George Washington University’s National Security, Cybersecurity, and Foreign Relations Law programs, and Georgetown’s Master’s in Cybersecurity Risk Management.
Source: JobsEQ, 2021.
Cybersecurity and defense companies in the DMV
- Amazon
- Boeing
- IntelliBridge
- Leidos
- Northrop Grumman
- RTX
- Virtru
Company spotlight: Virtru
In Fall 2023, Washington, DC-based cybersecurity company Virtru opened its new headquarters, The HUB, in Washington, DC. John Ackerly, Co-founder and CEO of Virtru, on the decision to base operations in DC:
Washington, DC serves as a financial, political, and innovation epicenter — there is no greater place for Virtru to continue to grow and scale. Innovation has always been at the heart of Virtru’s mission, and The HUB builds on this commitment. We designed a space that can uniquely function as a collaboration center for the District’s thriving cybersecurity community. Cybersecurity is a team sport: we need to bring many partners and customers to the table, and we look forward to facilitating those conversations across the private and public sectors.
DC’s cyber ecosystem: where leaders gather to innovate
- Air, Space & Cyber Conference
- AWS Summit Washington, DC
- Billington CyberSecurity Summit
- The Official Cyber Security Summit
Investment in the future: National Campus for Cyber Leadership
In a public-private partnership, Redbrick, architect Perkins & Will, AUI Labs, Consol USA, and KPMG began construction on the National Campus for Cyber Leadership (NCCL). The NCCL is intended to help train the next generation of cyber leaders and could host a security operations center and sensitive compartmented information facilities (SCIFs), training classrooms, cyber ranges, microelectronics maker spaces, and research and testing labs. The published target opening was 2026.
Talk to us
As you navigate your path forward in the nation’s capital, WDCEP is here to support your journey.
- Derek Ford, President & CEO — dford@wdcep.com, (202) 661-8670
- Kevin Morgan, Senior Vice President of Tech Sector Attraction & Retention — kmorgan@wdcep.com, (202) 661-8675
- Suzanne White, Executive Vice President of Corporate Attraction — swhite@wdcep.com, (202) 661-4271
Related: DC’s technology sector.
