As an anti-DEI movement continues to unfold across the country, driven by the Trump administration, some cybersecurity leaders are keeping their fingers crossed it doesn’t impede the sector’s ongoing efforts to funnel in more underrepresented voices into the workforce.
Since assuming office in January, President Trump has taken swift action to dismantle DEI initiatives—which the new White House describes as “illegal” and “immoral”—across the federal government. In the early days of his presidency, Trump shut down federal diversity offices and signed several executive orders intended to dismantle DEI programs, moves that have been met with legal challenges.
Many corporations are following suit and turning the page on prior DEI commitments. Target, PepsiCo, and Walmart are just a few of the companies that made the move to scale back their DEI policies and programs in recent months.
Growth stunt. The efforts may have a ripple effect on the cybersecurity industry’s talent pipeline. Karl Mattson, CISO at Endor Labs, told IT Brew that the changes have been top of mind for the CISO community, which is continuing to “react responsibly.” Mattson worries that the progress made in addressing gaps in representation across the industry, a longtime problem, may be upended by the rollbacks happening across the country.
“There’s a worry that we’re going to slide backwards,” Mattson said. “That would be tragic.”
Congresswoman Shontel Brown, who co-introduced a bill last year aimed at promoting the cybersecurity field to underrepresented communities, in an emailed statement told IT Brew that President Trump’s “attacks on diversity” are counterproductive to the industry’s ongoing talent crisis.
“We need more pathways for folks from every background to enter this fast-growing field—not fewer,” Brown said, adding that she still looks forward to growing support for the bill.
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Other ramifications. Mary Chaney, CEO of Minorities in Cybersecurity (MIC), a nonprofit that provides professional development resources to minorities, women, and nonbinary talent, told IT Brew that she has concerns about how the current anti-DEI movement will impact the willingness of certain corporations to collaborate with organizations like MIC due to the increased legal risks associated with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives at the moment (DEI falls under the social pillar of ESG). A 2025 Baker McKenzie report showed that 40% of senior lawyers felt ESG disputes were a “significant risk” for organizations.
“It becomes a [question of] ‘Will organizations still commit to affiliating themselves with an organization entitled Minorities in Cybersecurity when their legal risk has gone up?’” Chaney said.
Chaney told us that she has already seen a decline in corporate members who are renewing their membership with MIC and organizations that are sponsoring its programs.
“We have individuals that work for the government or quasi-government entities that are pulling out because their organizations are not supporting their attendance at our conference,” she said.
Charge forward. Despite uncertainty, security leaders who spoke with IT Brew remained optimistic about the future. Odie Martez Gray, president of the Diversity Cyber Council, a nonprofit that provides career development resources to marginalized communities, advised leaders in the industry to “hold strong” in their commitment to bringing diverse talent in the industry.
“We are at a very imminent time where we have to choose either individual success or collective progress,” Martez Gray said.