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 18 March 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
18 Mar 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 171 171 115
Rank change year-on-year 0 -56 +2
Contract jobs citing Information Security 686 487 881
As % of all contract jobs in the UK 1.59% 1.66% 1.98%
As % of the Processes & Methodologies category 1.84% 1.84% 2.29%
Number of daily rates quoted 391 289 580
10th Percentile £400 £344 £400
25th Percentile £450 £470 £475
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £550 £600 £575
Median % change year-on-year -8.33% +4.35% -4.17%
75th Percentile £653 £694 £675
90th Percentile £775 £815 £775
UK excluding London median daily rate £525 £575 £550
% change year-on-year -8.70% +4.55% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 70 30 42
10th Percentile £16.80 £16.23 £16.30
25th Percentile £20.71 £22.14 £19.01
Median hourly rate £25.50 £24.42 £25.00
Median % change year-on-year +4.42% -2.32% -66.67%
75th Percentile £41.94 £44.69 £50.00
90th Percentile £85.04 £81.05 £83.40
UK excluding London median hourly rate £23.09 £22.14 £40.23
% change year-on-year +4.28% -44.96% -46.90%

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 37,207 26,505 38,501
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK 85.99% 90.41% 86.54%
Number of daily rates quoted 23,564 17,019 25,049
10th Percentile £313 £308 £300
25th Percentile £413 £413 £413
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £525 £525
Median % change year-on-year -4.76% - -4.55%
75th Percentile £610 £638 £638
90th Percentile £721 £744 £744
UK excluding London median daily rate £480 £490 £500
% change year-on-year -2.04% -2.00% -
Number of hourly rates quoted 2,206 924 2,336
10th Percentile £14.93 £15.25 £13.00
25th Percentile £18.50 £20.99 £16.05
Median hourly rate £30.00 £32.50 £32.50
Median % change year-on-year -7.69% - -7.14%
75th Percentile £65.00 £64.52 £57.50
90th Percentile £75.00 £77.41 £70.00
UK excluding London median hourly rate £27.50 £31.64 £31.50
% change year-on-year -13.08% +0.44% -10.00%

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 18 March 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 18 March 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 18 March 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 -11 610 £550 -8.33% 296
UK excluding London -3 335 £525 -8.70% 229
London +7 284 £573 -4.58% 113
Work from Home -6 197 £550 - 151
South East -1 117 £563 -7.79% 84
North of England -48 72 £500 -6.37% 55
Midlands -34 51 £500 -14.71% 25
North West -23 48 £540 -1.82% 32
East of England +3 46 £535 -10.83% 20
West Midlands -39 37 £550 -28.80% 17
South West -19 22 £500 -24.53% 27
Scotland +9 21 £354 -25.79% 11
Yorkshire -53 20 £488 +13.04% 16
East Midlands -29 14 £450 +49.83% 8
Wales -2 6 £338 +87.50% 8
North East -16 4 £450 -16.97% 7

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 23 (3.35%) Confluence
2 16 (2.33%) SharePoint
3 12 (1.75%) Microsoft Exchange
4 7 (1.02%) Oracle Collaboration Suite
5 4 (0.58%) Apache Spark
6 1 (0.15%) WebSphere
6 1 (0.15%) WebSphere Application Server
Applications
1 38 (5.54%) Microsoft Office
2 35 (5.10%) Microsoft Excel
3 13 (1.90%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 8 (1.17%) 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
6 1 (0.15%) Navisworks
6 1 (0.15%) Revit
Business Applications
1 12 (1.75%) Oracle EBS
2 4 (0.58%) NEC Housing
3 2 (0.29%) SAP GRC
3 2 (0.29%) Temenos T24
4 1 (0.15%) Salesforce CRM
Cloud Services
1 122 (17.78%) Azure
2 88 (12.83%) AWS
3 43 (6.27%) Microsoft 365
4 33 (4.81%) GCP
5 31 (4.52%) Entra ID
6 26 (3.79%) SaaS
7 25 (3.64%) Power Platform
8 18 (2.62%) Microsoft Purview
9 16 (2.33%) OCI
10 12 (1.75%) GitHub
11 8 (1.17%) Azure Sentinel
11 8 (1.17%) IaaS
11 8 (1.17%) Microsoft Copilot
11 8 (1.17%) Power Automate
12 7 (1.02%) PaaS
12 7 (1.02%) PowerApps
13 6 (0.87%) Azure Data Factory
14 5 (0.73%) Amazon S3
14 5 (0.73%) Azure DevOps
14 5 (0.73%) Azure Key Vault
Communications & Networking
1 65 (9.48%) Firewall
2 36 (5.25%) Network Security
3 18 (2.62%) DNS
4 16 (2.33%) HTTP
4 16 (2.33%) TCP/IP
5 14 (2.04%) Wireless
6 12 (1.75%) SSH
6 12 (1.75%) VPN
6 12 (1.75%) WAN
7 10 (1.46%) Internet
8 9 (1.31%) DHCP
9 7 (1.02%) SMTP
9 7 (1.02%) Wi-Fi
10 5 (0.73%) Cisco IPT
10 5 (0.73%) FTP
10 5 (0.73%) SAN
10 5 (0.73%) SSL
11 4 (0.58%) Intrusion Detection
12 3 (0.44%) OSPF
12 3 (0.44%) SD-WAN
Database & Business Intelligence
1 21 (3.06%) Power BI
2 10 (1.46%) Data Warehouse
3 9 (1.31%) Metadata
3 9 (1.31%) SQL Server
4 7 (1.02%) Data Lake
5 4 (0.58%) Big Data
5 4 (0.58%) Hadoop
5 4 (0.58%) SQL Server Reporting Services
6 3 (0.44%) DynamoDB
6 3 (0.44%) NoSQL
6 3 (0.44%) Oracle Reports
6 3 (0.44%) Tableau
7 2 (0.29%) DB2
7 2 (0.29%) Elasticsearch
7 2 (0.29%) Electronic Patient Records
7 2 (0.29%) MongoDB
7 2 (0.29%) Oracle BI Publisher
7 2 (0.29%) PostgreSQL
7 2 (0.29%) Power Query
7 2 (0.29%) Relational Database
Development Applications
1 30 (4.37%) JIRA
2 15 (2.19%) 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%) GCC
6 1 (0.15%) git-flow
6 1 (0.15%) Jenkins
6 1 (0.15%) MSI
6 1 (0.15%) ScriptRunner
6 1 (0.15%) SonarQube
General
1 224 (32.65%) Social Skills
2 131 (19.10%) Finance
3 100 (14.58%) Public Sector
4 87 (12.68%) Analytical Skills
5 62 (9.04%) Legal
6 49 (7.14%) Banking
7 24 (3.50%) Organisational Skills
8 20 (2.92%) Presentation Skills
9 19 (2.77%) Documentation Skills
10 15 (2.19%) Influencing Skills
11 14 (2.04%) Retail
11 14 (2.04%) Telecoms
12 9 (1.31%) Law
12 9 (1.31%) Police
13 8 (1.17%) Manufacturing
14 7 (1.02%) Local Government
15 6 (0.87%) Marketing
15 6 (0.87%) Spanish Language
16 5 (0.73%) Cyber-Physical System
17 4 (0.58%) Military
Job Titles
1 114 (16.62%) Analyst
2 79 (11.52%) Consultant
3 53 (7.73%) Senior
4 50 (7.29%) Architect
5 48 (7.00%) Security Engineer
6 45 (6.56%) Lead
6 45 (6.56%) Security Consultant
7 43 (6.27%) Security Analyst
8 39 (5.69%) Security Manager
9 35 (5.10%) Security Architect
10 30 (4.37%) Security Officer
11 23 (3.35%) Developer
12 21 (3.06%) Security Specialist
13 19 (2.77%) Project Manager
14 18 (2.62%) Information Analyst
14 18 (2.62%) Information Security Analyst
15 17 (2.48%) Business Analyst
15 17 (2.48%) Cybersecurity Manager
16 16 (2.33%) Information Security Consultant
17 15 (2.19%) Information Security Officer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 15 (2.19%) OAuth
1 15 (2.19%) Oracle Fusion
2 11 (1.60%) OAuth2
3 10 (1.46%) OpenID
3 10 (1.46%) SAML
4 9 (1.31%) LDAP
4 9 (1.31%) SailPoint
5 7 (1.02%) Middleware
5 7 (1.02%) Spring
5 7 (1.02%) Spring Boot
6 5 (0.73%) Node.js
7 4 (0.58%) .NET
8 3 (0.44%) GraphQL
8 3 (0.44%) J2EE
8 3 (0.44%) JSP
8 3 (0.44%) JWT
8 3 (0.44%) Kafka
8 3 (0.44%) ModSecurity
8 3 (0.44%) REST
8 3 (0.44%) RESTful
Miscellaneous
1 112 (16.33%) Management Information System
2 65 (9.48%) Security Posture
3 35 (5.10%) Onboarding
4 32 (4.66%) Operational Technology
5 21 (3.06%) Cyber Threat
6 20 (2.92%) Data Protection Act
7 18 (2.62%) PKI
8 17 (2.48%) Cloud Native
8 17 (2.48%) Data Centre
9 14 (2.04%) Insider Threat
10 13 (1.90%) BYOD
10 13 (1.90%) Product Ownership
11 12 (1.75%) Security Operations Centre
11 12 (1.75%) Virtual Team
12 11 (1.60%) Analytical Mindset
12 11 (1.60%) Mobile App
13 10 (1.46%) Legacy Systems
14 9 (1.31%) Public Cloud
15 8 (1.17%) Enterprise Software
15 8 (1.17%) Hybrid Cloud
Operating Systems
1 68 (9.91%) Windows
2 32 (4.66%) Linux
3 24 (3.50%) Windows Server
4 15 (2.19%) Unix
5 3 (0.44%) Kali Linux
5 3 (0.44%) zOS
6 1 (0.15%) Apple iOS
6 1 (0.15%) Mac OS
6 1 (0.15%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
6 1 (0.15%) Windows 10
Processes & Methodologies
1 257 (37.46%) Cybersecurity
2 169 (24.64%) Risk Management
3 120 (17.49%) Problem-Solving
4 114 (16.62%) Data Protection
5 110 (16.03%) Continuous Improvement
6 102 (14.87%) Stakeholder Management
7 88 (12.83%) Cloud Security
8 82 (11.95%) Security Management
9 67 (9.77%) Agile
9 67 (9.77%) Change Management
10 66 (9.62%) Incident Response
11 64 (9.33%) Security Operations
12 62 (9.04%) Information Security Management
13 54 (7.87%) Stakeholder Engagement
14 51 (7.43%) AI
14 51 (7.43%) Threat Modelling
15 50 (7.29%) Regulatory Compliance
15 50 (7.29%) Roadmaps
16 49 (7.14%) Decision-Making
17 47 (6.85%) SIEM
Programming Languages
1 58 (8.45%) Python
2 33 (4.81%) PowerShell
3 21 (3.06%) Java
3 21 (3.06%) SQL
4 11 (1.60%) Bash
5 7 (1.02%) Kotlin
6 5 (0.73%) Go
7 4 (0.58%) C#
8 3 (0.44%) JavaScript
8 3 (0.44%) Kusto Query Language
8 3 (0.44%) RPG
9 2 (0.29%) Data Analysis Expressions
9 2 (0.29%) Rust
9 2 (0.29%) Solidity
10 1 (0.15%) Apex Code
10 1 (0.15%) BeanShell
10 1 (0.15%) C++
10 1 (0.15%) R
10 1 (0.15%) TypeScript
10 1 (0.15%) VBA
Qualifications
1 196 (28.57%) Security Cleared
2 146 (21.28%) SC Cleared
3 131 (19.10%) Degree
4 120 (17.49%) CISSP
5 91 (13.27%) CISM
6 51 (7.43%) DV Cleared
7 31 (4.52%) Computer Science Degree
8 30 (4.37%) CISA
9 28 (4.08%) Cisco Certification
10 22 (3.21%) (ISC)2 CCSP
11 21 (3.06%) CRISC
12 20 (2.92%) ISO 27001 Lead Auditor
13 19 (2.77%) CEH
14 18 (2.62%) Master's Degree
15 17 (2.48%) ISO 27001 Lead Implementer
16 16 (2.33%) CREST Certified
17 15 (2.19%) CTC Cleared
18 13 (1.90%) Postgraduate
19 11 (1.60%) CHECK Team Member
19 11 (1.60%) Cyber Scheme
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 227 (33.09%) ISO/IEC 27001
2 173 (25.22%) NIST
3 124 (18.08%) GDPR
4 71 (10.35%) GRC
5 51 (7.43%) PCI DSS
6 31 (4.52%) COBIT
7 29 (4.23%) NCSC
8 26 (3.79%) Cyber Essentials
8 26 (3.79%) QA
9 24 (3.50%) PMO
10 20 (2.92%) NIST 800
11 19 (2.77%) Data Quality
12 18 (2.62%) Sarbanes-Oxley
13 13 (1.90%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
14 12 (1.75%) ISO/IEC 27005
14 12 (1.75%) SOC 2
15 10 (1.46%) Accessibility
15 10 (1.46%) JSP 440
16 9 (1.31%) SLA
17 8 (1.17%) RMADS
System Software
1 43 (6.27%) Active Directory
2 9 (1.31%) Virtual Machines
3 6 (0.87%) Docker
4 4 (0.58%) VMware Infrastructure
5 1 (0.15%) Hyper-V
5 1 (0.15%) Microsoft App-V
5 1 (0.15%) RACF
5 1 (0.15%) Virtual Desktop
5 1 (0.15%) VMware Workstation
Systems Management
1 22 (3.21%) Microsoft Intune
2 13 (1.90%) Kubernetes
2 13 (1.90%) Nmap
3 11 (1.60%) SCCM
4 10 (1.46%) Terraform
5 7 (1.02%) Ansible
5 7 (1.02%) QRadar
6 6 (0.87%) CASB
6 6 (0.87%) SCOrch
7 5 (0.73%) Functional Safety
7 5 (0.73%) Single Sign-On
8 4 (0.58%) FortiGate
9 3 (0.44%) WSUS
10 2 (0.29%) Nessus
10 2 (0.29%) Prometheus
10 2 (0.29%) Red Hat Satellite
10 2 (0.29%) RSA Archer
11 1 (0.15%) Active Directory Federation Services
11 1 (0.15%) Cisco CUCM
11 1 (0.15%) Progress Chef
Vendors
1 107 (15.60%) Microsoft
2 34 (4.96%) ServiceNow
3 21 (3.06%) Oracle
4 15 (2.19%) Google
5 14 (2.04%) CyberArk
6 13 (1.90%) Cisco
6 13 (1.90%) IBM
7 9 (1.31%) CrowdStrike
7 9 (1.31%) Thales
8 8 (1.17%) Databricks
8 8 (1.17%) Fortinet
8 8 (1.17%) Gemalto
9 7 (1.02%) Palo Alto
10 6 (0.87%) BeyondTrust
10 6 (0.87%) Qualys
10 6 (0.87%) Splunk
10 6 (0.87%) VMware
11 5 (0.73%) Ariba
11 5 (0.73%) Rapid7
11 5 (0.73%) SAP