CIBR vs HACK

Key Takeaways

• CIBR tracks the Nasdaq CTA Cybersecurity Index with roughly 45 holdings, while HACK tracks the Nasdaq ISE Cyber Security Select Index with around 23 holdings, giving CIBR a meaningfully broader diversification base.
• Both funds are passive, thematic cybersecurity ETFs, but CIBR skews toward pure-play software and networking security, whereas HACK includes a notable defense and aerospace tilt through names like NOC and GD.
• CIBR carries a slightly lower expense ratio (0.58%) than HACK (0.60%), a modest but persistent cost advantage over time.
• CIBR is the larger, more liquid fund, which can translate into tighter trading spreads and easier execution for institutional and retail investors alike.
• CIBR concentrates more heavily in its top positions, while HACK spreads weight more evenly across a smaller basket of names, affecting relative volatility and single-stock risk.
• Tickeron AI Verdict: CIBR is the preferred ticker, reflecting its lower cost, broader diversification, stronger liquidity, and more direct exposure to core cybersecurity growth drivers.

Introduction

Cybersecurity has evolved from a niche IT concern into a board-level priority, driven by rising data-breach volumes, regulatory pressure, and the shift to cloud and hybrid work environments. Within this theme, two exchange-traded funds dominate the conversation: the First Trust NASDAQ Cybersecurity ETF (CIBR) and the Amplify Cybersecurity ETF (HACK). Both are passive, index-based vehicles that target similar investor goals, but they do not compete identically. Their underlying indexes, weighting methodologies, and sector tilts create meaningfully different exposure profiles. This ETF comparison examines their structural characteristics, sector exposure, and relative positioning to help investors understand which fund aligns more closely with their objectives.

First Trust NASDAQ Cybersecurity ETF (CIBR) Overview

The First Trust NASDAQ Cybersecurity ETF (CIBR) is a passively managed fund that seeks to track the Nasdaq CTA Cybersecurity Index, a liquidity-weighted benchmark of companies classified as cybersecurity providers by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). The fund holds roughly 45 securities and carries an expense ratio of 0.58%.

CIBR is heavily concentrated in pure-play cybersecurity and adjacent technology names. Its top holdings typically include PANW, FTNT, CRWD, CSCO, and AVGO, followed by positions such as NET, OKTA, FFIV, ZS, and AKAM. Sector allocation is overwhelmingly technology and software-driven, with limited exposure to industrials or defense. This makes CIBR a high-conviction, growth-oriented expression of the cybersecurity theme, though its top-heavy weighting structure can amplify single-name volatility.

Amplify Cybersecurity ETF (HACK) Overview

The Amplify Cybersecurity ETF (HACK) is a passively managed fund tracking the Nasdaq ISE Cyber Security Select Index, an adjusted market-capitalization-weighted benchmark that selects companies actively involved in providing cybersecurity technology and services. The fund holds approximately 23 securities and charges an expense ratio of 0.60%.

HACK shares several core names with CIBR, including AVGO, CRWD, CSCO, PANW, and ZS. However, HACK is more evenly distributed across a smaller basket and incorporates a distinctive defense and aerospace component, with holdings such as NOC, GD, and LDOS alongside pure-play software names. This blend means HACK behaves partly as a cybersecurity fund and partly as a defense-technology fund, a structural nuance that differentiates it from more software-centric peers like CIBR.

Industry and Thematic Backdrop

The cybersecurity sector is supported by durable, secular tailwinds rather than a single cyclical catalyst. Escalating ransomware activity, cloud adoption, identity-management demand, and tightening data-privacy regulation continue to push security spending higher across enterprises and governments. Recent market cycles have also seen renewed investor interest in defense-linked technology, as geopolitical tensions elevate national-security budgets in the U.S. and Europe.

This backdrop favors both funds, but in different ways. Pure-play software security names benefit from recurring subscription revenue and platform consolidation, while defense contractors benefit from government procurement cycles. Rising interest rates have historically pressured long-duration growth valuations, a risk relevant to software-heavy holdings. Conversely, diversified cash flows from hardware, networking, and defense exposure can provide ballast during risk-off periods, a factor that shapes the relative positioning of these two ETFs.

Performance and Positioning Comparison

Over recent weeks and months, both CIBR and HACK have moved broadly in tandem with the cybersecurity theme, but their composition has produced different risk profiles. CIBR, with its heavier tilt toward high-growth software and its more concentrated top holdings, has tended to exhibit greater sensitivity to earnings cycles among large-cap security vendors and to shifts in interest-rate expectations. HACK, by contrast, has drawn support from its defense and aerospace allocations, which have generally shown more resilience during periods of heightened geopolitical uncertainty.

From a liquidity and structural standpoint, CIBR is the larger and more heavily traded fund, offering tighter spreads and deeper order books. HACK's more evenly weighted, smaller portfolio spreads exposure across more idiosyncratic single names, which can reduce concentration risk but also expose investors to the volatility of smaller, less-established companies. For investors focused on relative positioning, the key distinction is that CIBR represents a more concentrated bet on software-led cybersecurity growth, while HACK offers a blended cybersecurity-and-defense profile.

AI Screener

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Tickeron AI Verdict

Based on observable structural factors, Tickeron's AI would likely favor CIBR over HACK at present. CIBR offers a marginally lower expense ratio, a substantially larger and more liquid trading profile, and broader diversification across roughly 45 holdings versus HACK's approximately 23. Its concentration in high-quality, pure-play cybersecurity leaders positions it directly on the sector's core growth engine, while its established weighting structure has demonstrated trend consistency across recent market cycles. HACK's defense exposure is a legitimate differentiator, but it dilutes the pure-play cybersecurity thesis and introduces a smaller, less liquid portfolio. On balance, CIBR's combination of cost efficiency, liquidity, diversification, and thematic focus gives it a probabilistic edge as the preferred vehicle for broad cybersecurity exposure.

Disclaimer

The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer.

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