I was recently quoted as saying, “Danish CISO salaries are falling.” This is a truth with modifications that deserves some nuance. As with most general observations about the cybersecurity industry, its lack of skills and talent, etc., the reality is more nuanced.
In this article, I will provide an overview of my observations of salary developments in the industry. It is based on the information I receive from candidates and clients in connection with recruitment processes. The figures will only be given in general terms, as there is great variation depending on industry and geography.
CISO salary level
First of all, it is necessary to define what we mean when we talk about the salary level for CISOs?
Is it the CISO in a C25 company, is it the CRO, Director Information Security, a security officer in a mid-sized organization, or the technical specialist with human resources responsibility who in practice acts as the Head of Security?
For CISOs in the largest Danish companies, the salary level has been increasing in recent years. Many CISOs have been promoted to VP or SVP level and are now paid in line with other management functions at the same organizational level.
The same trend applies to CISOs employed within critical infrastructure. Here, the scope of the role has grown significantly in recent years, which is also reflected in the salary levels combined with the limited supply of CISOs with heavy organizational experience.
The roles where the salary level has stagnated or fallen in the last few years are the security manager in the medium-sized company, where the role should be more appropriately described as a Head of IT/info Security. The supply of candidates for these positions is large and this affects the salary formation. Where a basic salary previously was in the range of 95,000-100,000 kroner per month, today we see employment in the range of 85,000-90,000 kroner.
Companies are successful in recruiting at this level because many candidates value other factors than salary. Proximity to the workplace, flexibility, a role with well-defined responsibilities. This means that companies are successful in attracting experienced security managers at a lower salary level than before.
Salary trends for security specialists and generalists
For a number of years, cybersecurity was known as an area with significant salary increases and an almost constant demand for employees. Today, the picture is more complex. There
There are still areas where demand exceeds supply. This applies to certain technical specializations, including application security and OT security. Here, the trend is still a salary level on par with "the small CISO roles", however, with a stagnation in the development at around 90,000 in basic salary.
For generalist areas such as the GRC area, salary levels were previously significantly above comparable functions in other professional areas. Here we have seen a stagnation in salary development and that new hires are made at a salary level that corresponds to responsibility and seniority among other knowledge workers - of course with variation for branch and industry.
New graduates
For many new graduates, landing their first job has become more difficult, and expectations for starting salaries have become more realistic. Where the expectation previously was a starting salary of around 50-55,000 kroner in basic salary, it now corresponds to what other new graduates and technical profiles earn in the labor market.
For comparison, IDA's indicative starting salaries for 2026 indicate a level of approximately DKK 48,200 for civil engineers and other graduates with long technical educations, DKK 47,400 for MSc profiles and DKK 45,300 for BScs and bachelors. The amounts include pension, of course.
Cybersecurity is no longer significantly different from other technical and academic degrees at the entry point to the job market. The difference arises for those who have chosen a specialization that gives them unique skills. As with everything else, pricing is a matter of supply and demand. It is deliberate that we do not provide more specific information about salary levels and packages, you are always welcome to reach out if you have a specific question about salary levels.
