Commissioner to fund Cyber Security Protection for Schools
Humberside Police and Crime Commissioner Jonathan Evison has announced a new grant opportunity for schools and colleges to help improve their Cyber Security, in partnership with the North East Business Resilience Centre (NEBRC), a police-led not for profit organisation funded by policing, corporate business and in partnership with academia at Sheffield Hallam and Northumbria Universities.
A survey of Cyber Security Breaches in 2023 revealed that educational institutions, including primary and secondary schools, are more likely to have experienced attacks on their online systems than the average UK business1. The new grant scheme will make up to £25,000 of funding available to match fund cyber security advice to be delivered by the NEBRC to schools and educational institutions.
The NEBRC work with a team of ‘Ethical Hackers’ at the universities who will provide an insight into a school’s cyber resilience and identify what a cyber-criminal could see and do if they were able to gain access to your network, and how they might gain that access. They will assess weaknesses and provide advice on how to improve security to ensure business continuity.
Police and Crime Commissioner Jonathan Evison said: “Cyber security in our educational establishments is extremely important and can be devastating if a system is hacked. Only recently, several local schools were targeted by hackers who disabled their computer systems and demanded a large sum of money to restore them2.
“I’m opening this grant scheme to make £25,000 available to match-fund schools and educational institutions to get advice and improved security by working with the NEBRC. Some schools and colleges do not have the financial resources to access cyber security programmes, leaving them vulnerable to attack by online criminals. I hope this scheme will build resilience in our centres of learning and help them to be aware of emerging threats to protect them against online crime and fraud.”
Rebecca Chapman, CEO of the NEBRC said: “We are delighted to be working closely with the Police and Crime Commissioner to deliver cyber security and online fraud prevention services to educational institutions across the Humberside Police region, making a real difference to the online safety of schools and their pupils.”
For more information on cyber security for schools, colleges and businesses visit www.nebrcentre.co.uk/ or email enquiries@nebrcentre.co.uk for details of how to apply for funding.
Posted on Wednesday 21st February 2024