Though most organisations have implemented policies and initiatives related to diversity and inclusion, almost two and a half out of four security professionals have either faced or seen gender injustice in their workplace, the CII Centre of Women Leadership revealed in the Women in Security Survey 2026. The results show a continual gap between the formal workplace policies and the lived realities of women in security positions.

92.7% of organisations have taken formal steps to include people in their workplace, including the development of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) frameworks, flexible working or gender-inclusive policies. But 74 % indicated that they personally had experienced or witnessed gender discrimination in security workplaces. The report indicates that the trend of organisations implementing workplace inclusion measures has continued to grow, but there are still challenges in their implementation and in achieving cultural change.

Representation Gap is ongoing in the security sector.

The survey found that 84.5% of those questioned said women were under-represented across all security roles, indicating that women's representation in the industry still hasn't increased significantly. Meanwhile, there is also a sense that there is support for women to be more involved, with 96.8% of respondents saying they believed more opportunities should be created for women in security occupations.

Financial representation is now more than a problem to be identified, it's a problem to be solved, and it's a problem that has to be solved in measurable ways through policies and practices, the report notes. It calls on organisations to do more than just announce policies and to work on ‘real outcomes' that have a positive impact on women's career development.

Policies are in existence, but workplace culture is still a challenge.

Organisations' progress in implementing formal inclusion measures was identified as notable in the survey. Approximately 89.6% of all those surveyed stated that their organisations have a formal DEI policy and 90.7% indicated that gender-neutral policy frameworks exist. In addition, 91.2% indicated that there were unconscious bias initiatives in their organisation, while 92.7% indicated that there were flexible work arrangements in their organisation.

However, workplace culture still remains as a barrier. Almost 39.7% of respondents singled out stereotypes and male-dominated work environment as the biggest problem for more women to enter security professions. The results reveal that the organisational culture did not develop in step with the formal policy.

Industry Leaders Request increased Accountability

Speaking about the results, Sagarika Chakraborty, Chief Executive Officer at IIRIS Consulting, noted that the results show that workplace inclusion goes beyond the mere implementation of policy. Organisations must now pay more attention to women's experiences, assess what is not working and be held accountable for results, she said. Women need equal opportunities to lead, influence decision-making and build long term careers in security and not have to continually prove their ability to be in the profession, she said.

Shivani Kumar, Executive Director of the CII Centre of Women Leadership, said the results should underscore the need for constant monitoring and accountability of the inclusion initiatives. Policies cannot achieve significant improvement without being continually evaluated for effectiveness and adjusted to the evolving workplace, she said. The empowerment of women must also involve ensuring equal leadership and decision-making opportunities, she added.

A mentor emerges as a key recommendation.

One of the most significant findings in the survey is the area of professional development. Mentorship was cited as the one most critical initiative for advancing women participation and advancing women in the security sector by approximately 45.2% of those who responded to the question.

Structured mentorship programmes, visible role models and more robust leadership pipelines may be considered to offset current gaps and promote more women to become and stay in security careers, the report recommends.

Pledges for industry-wide gender parity efforts are increasing.

There was also a strong level of support for more industry collaboration in the survey. Nearly 90.3% said they agreed that there should be a collective commitment in the industry to address representation and workplace inclusion, which shows that there is a willingness by stakeholders to seek collective commitments to improve representation and workplace inclusion.

The security sector is changing, explained Garry Singh, President of IIRIS Consulting, as organisations now put an emphasis on risk management, resilience and preparedness. He argued that inclusion should be a part of organisational capacity development and not just a policy. He said the survey offers proof that can help contribute to more responsible action throughout the industry.

This report builds on the findings of previous surveys.

The Women in Security Survey 2026 forms part of a series of surveys that will continue to look at the gender representation in the security industry. The 2022 survey set a benchmark for women's involvement and the 2025 survey looked at the structural challenges preventing progress. In the 2026 report, the progress made towards achieving practical improvements across organisations as a result of increased awareness is assessed.

The report was released at the India Women Leadership & Growth Summit 2026 held in New Delhi where the leaders of the policy, industry, entrepreneurship, security and women business sectors discussed aspects of leadership, security, business resilience and growth.

The survey results indicate that whilst an increasing number of organisations have expanded their formal inclusion programmes, ongoing work on culture, mentoring and holding people to account will be key to securing meaningful change towards greater representation and advancement of women in the security sector.