The digital future needs more women

For decades, technology and cybersecurity have been territories linked, almost always, to the male gender. Although there has been significant progress in recent years, equality remains a distant goal. According to the Women and Innovation 2024 report, only 38.9% of spin-offs‑ created by university staff have women in the promoting teams, and in technology-based companies their presence barely reaches 35.7%, a figure that shows the long way to go.

In the STEM field, the gap continues to be wide: only 16% of STEM professionals are women, and in the technology sector their presence falls to 13%, according to data from the Social Observatory of the La Caixa Foundation. These figures partly explain why cybersecurity, despite its exponential growth, still does not have enough female talent, especially in leadership positions.

If we broaden our view to the business sector, the outlook is not encouraging either. Grant  Thornton's latest global Women in Business report  reveals that "a young woman entering the labour market today will need more than 25 years to work in a midmarket company with real parity in management positions".

In addition, 7.8% of the companies analysed in the aforementioned report do not have any women in senior management, a decline compared to the previous year. These figures are particularly worrying considering that innovation and digital security – strategic sectors for global competitiveness – need diversity to anticipate risks, generate inclusive solutions and avoid technological biases.

In parallel, organizations such as Women4Cyber are doing fundamental work to make references visible and build community. Its mentoring programs, its CybHerTalks or initiatives such as W4C Startup School reflect that the ecosystem is moving, that there is a generation of highly prepared women occupying key roles, and that professional sisterhood has become a lever for progress.

Perpetuating biases in algorithms

Cybersecurity, moreover, is going through a critical moment. The emergence of artificial intelligence, the automation of attacks and the sophistication of cybercrime require diverse perspectives to understand and anticipate threats. Homogeneous teams run the risk of perpetuating biases in algorithms, ignoring vulnerabilities or designing systems that do not adequately protect the whole society. Diversity is not just an ethical value: it is a safety imperative.

Throughout my career—from auditing and IT security to leading Cybersecurity and Forensic at Grant Thornton—I've found that diverse teams are more analytical, more creative, and more resilient. The presence of women in areas such as incident response, cyber intelligence, forensic analysis or awareness provides a complementary, strategic and detail-oriented approach, which improves processes and strengthens the culture of security.

If we want to build a safe, innovative, and inclusive digital ecosystem, we need more women designing algorithms, leading security operations centers, driving compliance projects, and occupying positions where critical decisions are made. We need visible role models, active equality policies and a real commitment from the private sector – such as that proposed in the Women in Business report – to accelerate the presence of women in senior management.

Technology will not be truly transformative until diversity is part of its DNA. Therefore, today more than ever, it is time to promote that change. Not only for the women who are already here, but for those who are coming.