Looking to expand your information security skills or specialize in a particular IT security area over the next year, but not sure where to focus your time and energy? Or are you wondering whether your employer will even consider paying for you to upgrade your skills in these tough economic times?

The results of a recent survey on the hottest areas of IT security, conducted by the Information Security Media Group, offer some clues as to what the IT security training landscape will look like in 2010:

• When asked, "Where do you expect to see the greatest need for new information security professionals in 2010 and beyond?" 60 percent of the 255 survey respondents mentioned fraud, investigations and computer forensics; 57 percent said information security management; and 70 percent said risk management.
  
  
• One would normally assume that in tough economic times, training budgets will get cut, so maybe we should wait until things pick up a bit before we start pursuing skills upgrades, right? Not necessarily, according to this survey. Forty-two percent of respondents said they would seek academic training in 2010, while 20 percent will seek new security certifications. And the best news was that 79 percent said their organizations would continue to fund that training, at least in part.
  
  
• When asked what kind of training they would like to pursue, 62 percent of respondents cited certifications bodies, while 54 percent they'd go with information security professional groups and 43 percent said schools.

U.S. President Obama just this week appointed Howard Schmidt to the position of White House cybersecurity coordinator. It took seven months to find the right guy for the job – and understandably so. You don't want to give just anyone a job that, according to a number of news reports, will likely be a tough one.

If you're wondering what kind of credentials you'd need to land this kind of position, a posting on the White House blog describes Schmidt as having approximately 40 years of experience under his belt in areas such as government, business and law enforcement.

Schmidt was most recently president and CEO of the Information Security Forum, and has served as chief information security officer at eBay, as well as the chief security officer at Microsoft. He was also vice-chair of former president George W. Bush's Critical Infrastructure Protection Board, and special adviser for cyberspace security for the White House.

Are you wondering which industries will do the most IT hiring in 2010? A recent survey by the UK-based IT Job Board has revealed that the banking, software and telecom sectors are expected to be the most likely to boost their tech worker hiring in this coming year.

Out of the 129 IT employees polled for the survey, 48 percent predicted that banking would be the principal sector hiring more tech employees over the next year, despite all the problems it faced in 2009. Meanwhile, 42 percent of respondents mentioned software and IT services as hot industries, and 41 percent chose the telecom industry.

Respondents also reflected on which jobs would be most in demand. Their top two picks were:

• project manager roles (chosen by 31 percent of respondents);
• business analyst roles (also cited by 31 percent).

As for skills, here are the hottest ones respondents focused on:

• .Net (31 percent);
• SAP (29 percent);
• Java (26 percent);
• web development roles (26 percent).

In addition, 58 percent of respondents predicted that contract jobs would be in greater demand during 2010 than permanent positions. IT Job Board officials agree with this trend, pointing to the latter part of 2009, which saw a shift from permanent to contract roles because companies are seeking more flexibility, and predicting that this trend will continue into 2010.

You've probably noticed fewer tech job postings out there over the last week or two. No surprise there: hiring does tend to slow down over the holidays – although there are exceptions.

A friend of mine actually went through a couple of phone and in-person interviews for a job last week, and now he's going in for a final face-to-face meeting with prospective bosses tomorrow (December 21st) – and he may also be asked to job-shadow someone for a few hours sometime this week too. So you should never assume that all hiring stops, because there are some companies out there that still may be very eager to fill positions before the new year.

However, if you're not getting calls back after submitting and following up on your resume, don't fret: this is normal, as many HR departments have a tough time fitting in meetings and interviews, with people starting to take vacation time off. In fact, you may have to wait until after the holidays to even hear back from anyone.

But don't let that stop you from keeping up with your job search in other ways. Try brushing up your resume, improving your cover letter or practicing job interview techniques while you have some time off. Maybe your family can help you go through some sample job interview questions, or a friend can proofread all your job application materials.

Or you can use holiday get-togethers to mention to friends and family that you're hunting for a new job – you never know what you may come across. Someone might know some place that's hiring, or may have a connection that can help you get a foot in the door. Never underestimate the power of networking. But remember to also enjoy these parties for what they really are: a chance to spend time and celebrate the holidays with family and friends.