More than half (62 percent) of women in tech have seen levels of gender equality improve in their organization over the past two years, a report said on Friday. According to a Kaspersky report, the idea of gender equality represents more than just physical bodies through doors. It is also the notion of perceptions, feelings, stereotypes, and opportunity.

"The issue of gender stereotypes needs to be addressed long before women enter the workplace. It needs to start at school, to engage and encourage an interest in IT and tech fields," Noushin Shabab, Senior Security Researcher, Global Research & Analysis Team at Kaspersky, said in a statement.

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Addressing the 'intimidation' side of things first, 50 percent of women agree that the lack of other females in their industry made them wary of starting a career in IT/tech, 12 percent above the global average. This fear is compounded by 43 percent of APAC women surveyed stating that they felt intimidated by the unequal gender spilled when they went through the interview process for their first job in IT/tech — a number that is driven in part by India where this number rises to a concerning 64 percent.

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Despite a global improvement in perceptions around gender representation, more than half of the women in the APAC region (58 percent) agree that gender equality could be improved by remote working, this indicates an entrenched office culture concern that is still lingering for newcomers even if the overall picture and climate is improving, the survey revealed.

The one remaining fear, however, is the impact of Covid-19, with 46 percent of women (40 percent globally) saying they have been held back from pursuing career changes since March 2020 because of home pressures, and only 40 percent of males in APAC reporting the same. (IANS/SP)