An underestimated risk with indirect cybersecurity consequences

In 2025, IT professionals are experiencing more pressure than ever before. According to Gartner’s report Top Trends in Cybersecurity for 2025, burnout among IT and cybersecurity teams is one of the major organizational challenges. While burnout primarily affects employees personally, it can indirectly impact organizational cybersecurity as well.

Why burnout among IT professionals matters for cybersecurity

Burnout leads to quicker fatigue, reduced performance, and increased likelihood of unintentional mistakes among employees. In cybersecurity, this indirectly increases risks, as human errors often play a critical role in security incidents.

Recent research by Yer (2023) indicates that over 42% of IT professionals experience burnout symptoms, rising to 58% among younger IT workers. These statistics highlight the importance of understanding how mental overload indirectly affects cybersecurity.

Potential cybersecurity implications of IT burnout

Burnout among IT staff can indirectly affect cybersecurity. Consider, for example:

• Decreased alertness due to fatigue
  Employees might fail to recognize phishing emails quickly or respond inadequately to incidents.

• Reduced quality of monitoring and incident response
  Teams could overlook threats more easily, increasing cybersecurity risks.

• Increased risk of human error
  Stress may lead employees to unintentionally neglect or improperly apply security measures.

Burnout prevention indirectly supports cybersecurity

Focusing preventively on stress reduction and mental health primarily benefits employees’ wellbeing. Indirectly, this also supports more effective cybersecurity policies. Mindgame has developed In Good Mood, a gamified tool designed to assist organizations by:

• Early identification and management of burnout risks.

• Reducing stress factors within IT and security teams.

• Enhancing sustainable employability, indirectly strengthening cybersecurity resilience.

Gamification as preventive measure

At Mindgame, we utilize gamification for effective burnout prevention, providing employees with accessible, interactive insights and positively influencing behavior.

Additionally, we offer a standalone solution called Cyber Wise, specifically targeting cybersecurity awareness through behavioral change and gamification. Both solutions underline the importance of behavioral change for effective prevention.

Conclusion

While burnout prevention primarily focuses on employee wellbeing, it can also indirectly enhance performance and resilience within cybersecurity teams. Mindgame is dedicated to helping organizations achieve these goals with effective gamified solutions.

Would you like to learn more about how In Good Mood can support your organization?
Contact us for a demo or more information without obligation.