Q1 2026 at a Glance
The first quarter of 2026 confirmed what we predicted at the end of 2025: the cybersecurity labour market remains tight, NIS2 drives demand, and AI security is emerging as a new discipline. Here are our findings, supported by our own data.
Most In-Demand Roles Q1
1. Security Engineer (Cloud) — 35% of all requests. 2. GRC Specialist — 22%, driven by NIS2/DORA. 3. SOC Analyst L2+ — 18%. 4. IAM Engineer — 15%. 5. Interim CISO — 10%, particularly at mid-sized organisations.
Salary Developments
Average salary growth: +6% YoY for permanent roles. Interim rates stable to slightly rising (+3%). Notable: AI Security Engineer rates are 20-30% higher than comparable security engineering roles.
The Rise of AI Security
Q1 2026 marked the beginning of structural demand for AI Security specialists. Roles ranged from LLM Red Teaming to AI Governance and ML Security Engineering. Still a small segment, but growing rapidly.
MVPeople Numbers Q1
Average time-to-fill: 12 working days (interim) / 28 working days (permanent). First-presentation success rate: 78%. Most-placed profile: Security Engineer with cloud expertise. Client satisfaction score: 9.1/10.