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In a bid to improve the resilience of the public sector’s digital estate, the UK government has unveiled its first cybersecurity strategy. This is designed to help public services avoid being breached or shut down by hostile threat actors, social engineering efforts or phishing attempts.
Last week, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Steve Barclay, made a speech in London announcing £37.8 million in funding. This will be used to help local authorities improve their resilience against cybersecurity threats, in order to protect essential data and services. These include voter registration, housing benefits, school grants, social care provisions, electoral management and more.
The strategy was announced alongside a host of other initiatives, including the new Government Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (GCCC). This is designed to improve coordinated responses to cyberattacks on public sector systems. A new cross-government vulnerability reporting service was also announced, as a way to enable security researchers and the public report any issues with public sector digital services with greater ease.
Not only that but a more detailed assurance regime is set to be implemented across all central government departments.
In his speech last week, Barclay stated that the UK is now the third most targeted country in the world when it comes to cybersecurity threats. He commented: “Our public services are precious, and without them, individuals can’t access the support that they rely on.”
The new strategy was created in answer to the alarming rise in cyberattacks against the UK public sector over recent years. According to the government, of the 777 cybercrime incidents managed by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) between September 2020 and August 2021, around 40% targeted public sector services.
Most notable among these were the ransomware attacks on Hackney and Redcar & Cleveland councils in 2020, both of which caused huge disruption and led to substantial recovery costs.
“If we want people to continue to access their pensions online, social care support from local government or health services, we need to step up our cyber defences,” says Barclay. He describes the threat of cybercrime as both “clear and growing”, making it known that steps must be taken to protect the services we rely on.
He continues: “But the government is acting – investing over £2 billion in cyber, retiring legacy IT systems and stepping up our skills and coordination.”
This new initiative comes at a time when cyberthreats are at an all-time high both in the UK and around the world. However, it also follows the publication of the UK government’s national cyber strategy at the end of last year, which was designed to bolster the country’s defensive and offensive capabilities and see the UK rise to the status of a global cyber power.
The UK security industry has welcomed the new cyber announcements, as today’s public services are almost entirely reliant on digital technology, making cyber protection more important than ever. Because the UK is so highly target, it’s important that steps our taken to protect the nation’s ability to support both its citizens and the key services they rely on.
However, some have questions whether £37.8 million is enough to make significant changes to the way local authorities protect their data. It may be that more steps are necessary in the future in order to help public services operate without fear.
If you need help ensuring your business data is secure, you can get in touch with the experts at SRM today. Click here to contact a member of our team and find out more.
