Cyber security firm SecureWorks to lay off 15% of its workforce

Cyber-security company SecureWorks has announced to lay off 15 per cent of its workforce, in its second round of job cuts this year.

In a regulatory filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), SecureWorks said that it would incur about $14.2 million in expenses due to the layoffs.

These expenses are anticipated to consist primarily of severance and other termination benefits, as well as real estate-related expenses.

"SecureWorks announced to employees a plan to reduce the company's workforce by approximately 15 per cent and to implement certain real estate‑related cost optimisation actions," it said in the filing.

The company's CEO Wendy Thomas said there is the need to "simplify and scale our business and to deliver profitable growth".

In February this year, SecureWorks, backed by Dell Technologies, had laid off about 9 per cent of the workforce globally as part of its restructuring plans.

The company last disclosed its workforce in a regulatory filing in March 2022 to 2,351 employees.

"Our business is evolving with our partners and customers in support of their security needs," Thomas had said.

Last week, another US-based cybersecurity firm Rapid7 laid off around 470 employees, or 18 per cent of its workforce.

The Boston-based company expects that the majority of the restructuring charges will be incurred in the third and fourth quarter of 2023.

The company had over 2,600 full-time employees and over 700 employees in Massachusetts.