Information Security Contract Job Trends

Information Security (InfoSec)
UK

The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs requiring Information Security skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 30 April 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
30 Apr 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 185 179 115
Rank change year-on-year -6 -64 -10
Contract jobs citing Information Security 686 457 863
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.45% 1.56% 1.98%
As % of the Processes & Methodologies category 1.72% 1.72% 2.29%
Number of daily rates quoted 414 281 543
10th Percentile £400 £313 £375
25th Percentile £459 £425 £481
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £550 £550 £575
Median % change year-on-year - -4.35% -4.17%
75th Percentile £675 £685 £688
90th Percentile £800 £825 £775
UK excluding London median daily rate £525 £550 £575
% change year-on-year -4.55% -4.35% +4.55%
Number of hourly rates quoted 54 26 26
10th Percentile £16.56 £19.13 £12.75
25th Percentile £20.79 £22.14 £16.96
Median hourly rate £35.50 £24.66 £19.50
Median % change year-on-year +43.96% +26.46% -74.00%
75th Percentile £67.38 £70.91 £23.89
90th Percentile £84.91 £82.38 £38.43
UK excluding London median hourly rate £36.00 £23.65 £18.75
% change year-on-year +52.25% +26.11% -75.49%

All Process & Methodology Skills
UK

Information Security falls under the Processes and Methodologies category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring process or methodology skills.

Contract vacancies with a requirement for process or methodology skills 39,921 26,554 37,629
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 84.61% 90.86% 86.31%
Number of daily rates quoted 25,152 17,143 24,256
10th Percentile £319 £308 £300
25th Percentile £413 £413 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £521 £525
Median % change year-on-year -4.03% -0.76% -4.55%
75th Percentile £613 £630 £638
90th Percentile £725 £744 £750
UK excluding London median daily rate £488 £483 £500
% change year-on-year +1.04% -3.50% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 2,393 1,068 2,439
10th Percentile £14.96 £14.81 £12.75
25th Percentile £19.91 £18.51 £16.00
Median hourly rate £41.56 £29.07 £35.00
Median % change year-on-year +42.95% -16.94% -6.17%
75th Percentile £66.00 £62.24 £59.95
90th Percentile £78.75 £75.00 £72.50
UK excluding London median hourly rate £42.71 £28.00 £36.50
% change year-on-year +52.52% -23.29% +1.39%

Information Security
Job Vacancy Trend

Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing Information Security relative to all contract IT jobs advertised.

Information Security job vacancy trend in the UK

Information Security
Daily Rate Trend

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Information Security.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Information Security

Information Security
Daily Rate Histogram

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Information Security over the 6 months to 30 April 2026.

Daily rate histogram for Information Security in the UK

Information Security
Hourly Rate Trend

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Information Security.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK citing Information Security

Information Security
Hourly Rate Histogram

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Information Security over the 6 months to 30 April 2026.

Hourly rate histogram for Information Security in the UK

Information Security
Top 16 Contract Job Locations

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Information Security within the UK over the 6 months to 30 April 2026. The 'Rank Change' column provides an indication of the change in demand within each location based on the same 6 month period last year.

Location Rank Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Matching
Contract
IT Job Ads
Median
Daily Rate
Past 6 Months
Median Daily Rate
% Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Live
Jobs
England -9 618 £550 - 286
UK excluding London -9 333 £525 -4.55% 207
London +7 295 £598 +11.16% 117
Work from Home -17 181 £550 +4.76% 166
South East +2 121 £550 -8.33% 74
North of England -60 64 £500 +0.78% 49
Midlands -39 49 £500 +25.00% 32
North West -21 44 £550 +10.86% 35
East of England -9 43 £535 -10.83% 20
West Midlands -35 38 £500 +8.11% 21
South West -19 30 £500 -14.89% 26
Scotland -2 22 £358 -24.95% 5
Yorkshire -53 17 £463 +12.12% 12
East Midlands -22 11 £541 +80.17% 10
Wales -8 4 £475 +163.89% 1
North East -22 3 £450 -15.73% 2

Information Security
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities by Category

The following tables expand on the one above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. They cover the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each category:

Application Platforms
1 19 (2.77%) Confluence
2 12 (1.75%) SharePoint
3 9 (1.31%) Microsoft Exchange
4 7 (1.02%) Oracle Collaboration Suite
5 4 (0.58%) Apache Spark
6 2 (0.29%) IIS
7 1 (0.15%) WebSphere
7 1 (0.15%) WebSphere Application Server
Applications
1 36 (5.25%) Microsoft Excel
2 35 (5.10%) Microsoft Office
3 15 (2.19%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 10 (1.46%) Microsoft Project
5 2 (0.29%) Spreadsheet
6 1 (0.15%) Adobe After Effects
6 1 (0.15%) Adobe Illustrator
6 1 (0.15%) Adobe Premiere
6 1 (0.15%) Camtasia
6 1 (0.15%) MS Visio
Business Applications
1 12 (1.75%) Oracle EBS
2 4 (0.58%) NEC Housing
2 4 (0.58%) Remedy ITSM
3 2 (0.29%) SAP GRC
3 2 (0.29%) Temenos T24
4 1 (0.15%) Oracle Applications
Cloud Services
1 138 (20.12%) Azure
2 96 (13.99%) AWS
3 50 (7.29%) Microsoft 365
4 33 (4.81%) Entra ID
5 32 (4.66%) SaaS
6 31 (4.52%) GCP
7 26 (3.79%) Power Platform
8 20 (2.92%) Microsoft Purview
9 18 (2.62%) GitHub
10 16 (2.33%) OCI
11 11 (1.60%) Azure Sentinel
12 9 (1.31%) Power Automate
13 8 (1.17%) IaaS
13 8 (1.17%) Microsoft Copilot
14 7 (1.02%) PaaS
14 7 (1.02%) PowerApps
15 6 (0.87%) Azure Data Factory
15 6 (0.87%) Azure DevOps
15 6 (0.87%) Azure Logic Apps
15 6 (0.87%) OneDrive
Communications & Networking
1 49 (7.14%) Firewall
2 39 (5.69%) Network Security
3 16 (2.33%) DNS
4 15 (2.19%) TCP/IP
4 15 (2.19%) Wireless
5 13 (1.90%) HTTP
5 13 (1.90%) VPN
6 7 (1.02%) DHCP
6 7 (1.02%) SSH
6 7 (1.02%) WAN
7 6 (0.87%) SSL
8 5 (0.73%) FTP
8 5 (0.73%) Internet
8 5 (0.73%) SMTP
9 4 (0.58%) Cisco IPT
9 4 (0.58%) HTTPS
10 3 (0.44%) Intrusion Detection
10 3 (0.44%) SAN
10 3 (0.44%) SD-WAN
11 2 (0.29%) NAS
Database & Business Intelligence
1 24 (3.50%) Power BI
2 13 (1.90%) SQL Server
3 9 (1.31%) Data Warehouse
3 9 (1.31%) Metadata
4 6 (0.87%) Data Lake
5 4 (0.58%) Big Data
5 4 (0.58%) Hadoop
5 4 (0.58%) Oracle Reports
5 4 (0.58%) SQL Server Reporting Services
6 3 (0.44%) DynamoDB
6 3 (0.44%) NoSQL
6 3 (0.44%) PostgreSQL
6 3 (0.44%) Tableau
7 2 (0.29%) Elasticsearch
7 2 (0.29%) MongoDB
7 2 (0.29%) MySQL
7 2 (0.29%) Oracle BI Publisher
8 1 (0.15%) Amazon Redshift
8 1 (0.15%) MariaDB
8 1 (0.15%) Relational Database
Development Applications
1 22 (3.21%) JIRA
2 14 (2.04%) Burp Suite
3 12 (1.75%) Metasploit
4 9 (1.31%) Git
5 2 (0.29%) GitLab
6 1 (0.15%) AppScan
6 1 (0.15%) Atlassian Bamboo
6 1 (0.15%) Bitbucket
6 1 (0.15%) git-flow
6 1 (0.15%) Jenkins
6 1 (0.15%) ScriptRunner
6 1 (0.15%) SoapUI
6 1 (0.15%) SonarQube
General
1 212 (30.90%) Social Skills
2 141 (20.55%) Finance
3 99 (14.43%) Public Sector
4 91 (13.27%) Analytical Skills
5 67 (9.77%) Legal
6 56 (8.16%) Banking
7 26 (3.79%) Organisational Skills
8 24 (3.50%) Documentation Skills
9 21 (3.06%) Influencing Skills
10 14 (2.04%) Retail
11 12 (1.75%) Local Government
11 12 (1.75%) Presentation Skills
12 10 (1.46%) Telecoms
13 9 (1.31%) Law
14 7 (1.02%) Marketing
14 7 (1.02%) Police
15 6 (0.87%) Manufacturing
16 5 (0.73%) Cyber-Physical System
16 5 (0.73%) Military
17 4 (0.58%) Investment Banking
Job Titles
1 104 (15.16%) Analyst
2 80 (11.66%) Consultant
3 56 (8.16%) Security Engineer
4 53 (7.73%) Architect
4 53 (7.73%) Security Consultant
5 51 (7.43%) Senior
6 45 (6.56%) Lead
7 42 (6.12%) Security Analyst
8 40 (5.83%) Security Manager
9 39 (5.69%) Security Architect
10 33 (4.81%) Security Officer
11 27 (3.94%) Project Manager
12 25 (3.64%) Developer
13 21 (3.06%) Business Analyst
13 21 (3.06%) Information Security Officer
14 19 (2.77%) Security Specialist
15 18 (2.62%) IT Manager
16 17 (2.48%) Cybersecurity Manager
16 17 (2.48%) Information Analyst
16 17 (2.48%) Information Security Analyst
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 21 (3.06%) OAuth
2 16 (2.33%) Oracle Fusion
3 15 (2.19%) LDAP
3 15 (2.19%) OAuth2
4 14 (2.04%) SAML
5 13 (1.90%) OpenID
6 12 (1.75%) SailPoint
7 7 (1.02%) J2EE
7 7 (1.02%) JSP
7 7 (1.02%) Spring
7 7 (1.02%) Spring Boot
8 6 (0.87%) Middleware
8 6 (0.87%) Web Services
9 5 (0.73%) Node.js
9 5 (0.73%) REST
10 4 (0.58%) .NET
10 4 (0.58%) Elastic Stack
11 3 (0.44%) ADO
11 3 (0.44%) JWT
11 3 (0.44%) RESTful
Miscellaneous
1 111 (16.18%) Management Information System
2 63 (9.18%) Security Posture
3 48 (7.00%) Onboarding
4 37 (5.39%) Operational Technology
5 19 (2.77%) Cyber Threat
5 19 (2.77%) Data Protection Act
6 14 (2.04%) Cloud Native
7 13 (1.90%) Analytical Mindset
8 12 (1.75%) Virtual Team
9 11 (1.60%) BYOD
9 11 (1.60%) Insider Threat
9 11 (1.60%) PKI
9 11 (1.60%) Product Ownership
9 11 (1.60%) Security Operations Centre
10 10 (1.46%) Data Centre
10 10 (1.46%) Legacy Systems
10 10 (1.46%) Mobile App
11 9 (1.31%) Public Cloud
12 8 (1.17%) Enterprise Software
12 8 (1.17%) Self-Motivation
Operating Systems
1 72 (10.50%) Windows
2 39 (5.69%) Linux
3 28 (4.08%) Windows Server
4 12 (1.75%) Unix
5 6 (0.87%) Apple iOS
6 4 (0.58%) Mac OS
7 3 (0.44%) zOS
8 2 (0.29%) Windows 10
9 1 (0.15%) Kali Linux
9 1 (0.15%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Processes & Methodologies
1 253 (36.88%) Cybersecurity
2 180 (26.24%) Risk Management
3 116 (16.91%) Continuous Improvement
4 113 (16.47%) Problem-Solving
5 109 (15.89%) Data Protection
5 109 (15.89%) Stakeholder Management
6 82 (11.95%) Cloud Security
7 75 (10.93%) Security Management
8 66 (9.62%) Agile
9 65 (9.48%) Incident Response
10 64 (9.33%) Security Operations
11 62 (9.04%) Stakeholder Engagement
12 61 (8.89%) Change Management
13 58 (8.45%) Information Security Management
13 58 (8.45%) Roadmaps
14 57 (8.31%) AI
15 53 (7.73%) Computer Science
16 52 (7.58%) Decision-Making
16 52 (7.58%) SIEM
17 51 (7.43%) Migration
Programming Languages
1 73 (10.64%) Python
2 52 (7.58%) PowerShell
3 24 (3.50%) Java
4 21 (3.06%) Bash
5 18 (2.62%) SQL
6 7 (1.02%) Kotlin
7 6 (0.87%) Kusto Query Language
8 5 (0.73%) Go
9 4 (0.58%) C#
10 3 (0.44%) RPG
11 2 (0.29%) Apex Code
11 2 (0.29%) JavaScript
12 1 (0.15%) BeanShell
12 1 (0.15%) Bicep
12 1 (0.15%) C++
12 1 (0.15%) Data Analysis Expressions
12 1 (0.15%) Lisp
12 1 (0.15%) R
12 1 (0.15%) TypeScript
12 1 (0.15%) VBA
Qualifications
1 188 (27.41%) Security Cleared
2 143 (20.85%) SC Cleared
3 139 (20.26%) Degree
4 116 (16.91%) CISSP
5 80 (11.66%) CISM
6 46 (6.71%) DV Cleared
7 31 (4.52%) CISA
8 25 (3.64%) Cisco Certification
9 24 (3.50%) Computer Science Degree
9 24 (3.50%) CRISC
10 20 (2.92%) (ISC)2 CCSP
11 17 (2.48%) CEH
11 17 (2.48%) CREST Certified
11 17 (2.48%) ISO 27001 Lead Implementer
12 15 (2.19%) ISO 27001 Lead Auditor
12 15 (2.19%) Postgraduate
13 14 (2.04%) Master's Degree
14 12 (1.75%) CompTIA Security+
15 11 (1.60%) CHECK Team Member
15 11 (1.60%) Cyber Scheme
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 229 (33.38%) ISO/IEC 27001
2 155 (22.59%) NIST
3 118 (17.20%) GDPR
4 90 (13.12%) GRC
5 50 (7.29%) PCI DSS
6 32 (4.66%) COBIT
7 27 (3.94%) Cyber Essentials
8 26 (3.79%) PMO
8 26 (3.79%) QA
9 24 (3.50%) Data Quality
9 24 (3.50%) NCSC
10 20 (2.92%) Sarbanes-Oxley
11 17 (2.48%) NIST 800
12 13 (1.90%) ISO/IEC 27005
12 13 (1.90%) SOC 2
13 12 (1.75%) Accessibility
14 10 (1.46%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
15 8 (1.17%) HIPAA
15 8 (1.17%) RMADS
16 7 (1.02%) HMG Security Policy Framework
System Software
1 51 (7.43%) Active Directory
2 8 (1.17%) Docker
3 7 (1.02%) Virtual Machines
4 6 (0.87%) VMware Infrastructure
5 5 (0.73%) Hyper-V
6 3 (0.44%) Squid
7 1 (0.15%) BitLocker
7 1 (0.15%) Ceph
7 1 (0.15%) Firmware
7 1 (0.15%) RACF
Systems Management
1 18 (2.62%) Microsoft Intune
2 14 (2.04%) Kubernetes
3 13 (1.90%) Terraform
4 11 (1.60%) Nmap
4 11 (1.60%) SCCM
5 10 (1.46%) Ansible
6 7 (1.02%) Single Sign-On
7 5 (0.73%) Functional Safety
8 4 (0.58%) QRadar
8 4 (0.58%) WSUS
9 3 (0.44%) CASB
9 3 (0.44%) Podman
10 2 (0.29%) Computer Incident Response Team
10 2 (0.29%) FortiGate
10 2 (0.29%) Prometheus
10 2 (0.29%) Red Hat Satellite
10 2 (0.29%) SCOrch
11 1 (0.15%) Nessus
11 1 (0.15%) Progress Chef
11 1 (0.15%) RSA Archer
Vendors
1 118 (17.20%) Microsoft
2 35 (5.10%) ServiceNow
3 23 (3.35%) Oracle
4 18 (2.62%) CyberArk
5 14 (2.04%) Cisco
5 14 (2.04%) Google
6 13 (1.90%) BeyondTrust
7 11 (1.60%) CrowdStrike
8 7 (1.02%) Palo Alto
8 7 (1.02%) VMware
9 6 (0.87%) IBM
9 6 (0.87%) Remedy
9 6 (0.87%) Splunk
10 5 (0.73%) Databricks
10 5 (0.73%) Sophos
11 4 (0.58%) Atlassian
11 4 (0.58%) Fortinet
11 4 (0.58%) NEC
11 4 (0.58%) SAP
11 4 (0.58%) UiPath