Government Information and Support for the Cyber Security Sector

The coronavirus outbreak is the biggest public health emergency in decades. It calls for decisive action, at home and abroad, of the kind not normally seen in peacetime.

We’re publishing information for our colleagues in the cyber security sector to let you know what the Government is doing to help the sector and provide the opportunity to feed your comments back to us. Many of you have already been in touch and we thank you for your engagement.

In this post we:

• Provide information on the support the Government is offering to help businesses through this difficult period;
• Outline what we are doing to continue our work on cyber security;
• Provide details of how you may be able to contribute to the effort to help the public, and
• Give you the chance to provide your views to the Government.

A Message from the Minister for Digital Infrastructure, Matt Warman

“Thank you to everyone for continuing to help make the UK a safe place to be online. Your work is more important now than ever. My Department is committed to supporting the cyber security sector during this crisis and is keen to hear from you on where and how that help can be most effective. I encourage cyber security firms to keep giving the country the tools needed to securely work online so we can all stay home, protect the NHS and save lives.”

Government response to coronavirus

On the public health issue, the Government is doing everything it can to tackle the pandemic and mitigate its impact. We are mobilising every bit of Government to defend our people and our country. Businesses, universities and communities across the country are coming together to help.

The Government is providing a range of support to help businesses, including loans, cash grants, tax relief and support for self-employed people. Please visit www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support for further information.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is supporting the wider Government efforts and we particularly want to understand the needs and asks of our sectors - including where and how we can work together to help society and the economy during the crisis.

Our work on cyber security

DCMS is prioritising support for the cyber security sector to help address economic challenges and critical incidents. We are continuing the delivery of critical Government programmes supporting the cyber security sector, such as the LORCA cyber accelerator, the NCSC Accelerator and our Cyber Discovery skills programme. We are also working with the National Cyber Security Centre and others to distribute guidance and advice to the public and businesses on how to stay secure online.

Cyber security guidance for the public

As you know, cyber criminals are opportunistic and often look to exploit fears over current events. The public and organisations should continue to be alert to this threat. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has issued guidance for organisations on how to prepare for secure home working and guidance on how to spot and deal with suspicious emails. Please feel free to share this with your customers and contacts.

With more interaction and work happening online, the Government is continuing its push to help the public and businesses live and work securely. DCMS is working with the National Cyber Security Centre and the Home Office to run a new phase of the Cyber Aware campaign. This will help the public and small businesses adopt secure online behaviours and protect themselves from current threats. This activity will start very soon. Please get in touch if your organisation is interested in partnering with us on this campaign.

Information and support for cyber security businesses

The Government and its partners have made several recent announcements for the cyber security sector. Many of our growth programmes are currently open to applications.

• A new look Cyber Essentials scheme is now in operation, delivered by the IASME consortium.
• The NCSC Cyber Accelerator is now open for applications from start-up businesses to help create new security solutions. Companies can apply to be part of the fifth cohort.
• LORCA have opened a call for cyber security innovators to be part of the next cohort of their scale-up programme. Companies can apply here by 4 May.
• Our early stage incubator programme, HutZero, run by CyLon and CSIT, is recruiting for its sixth cohort. The application deadline is 17 May.
• Our SME programme, Cyber101, is running a Business Skills Bootcamp, scheduled for 19 May. You can also register for information on future bootcamps.
• Innovate UK currently have funding opportunities open for projects tackling cyber security IoT challenges (applications by 20 May).

In addition, DCMS has published a range of statistics and research over the past two months to help inform the cyber security sector, including:

• The Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2020, published on 25 March. The survey details the scale and impact of cyber attacks and data breaches on businesses, charities and educational institutions. We have also published a series of infographic summaries illustrating the results.
• Cyber Security Labour Market Research. This research provides details about the UK cyber security labour market.
• Cyber Security Sectoral Analysis This is an analysis of the UK’s cyber security industry, which includes figures on size, employment and revenue.

Your feedback

Finally, please be aware DCMS is issuing a survey asking organisations across DCMS sectors for feedback on how coronavirus is affecting them. Please look out for this and respond if you can. Your feedback will be valuable in helping to shape future Government action.

If you have any specific feedback on cyber security, any questions about this post or any suggestions of how you may be able to help, please contact us at [email protected]. You can also keep up to date on announcements here on the Cyber Exchange portal. Please feel free to share this information with your colleagues. We intend to post a further update in due course.