The National Cyber Security Centre reveals how they help to make the UK the safest place to live and do business online
The National Cyber Security Centre helps to make the UK the safest place to live and do business online. The NCSC was set up to help protect our critical services from cyber-attacks, manage major incidents and improve the underlying security of the UK Internet through technological improvement and advice to citizens and organisations. Our vision is to help make the UK the safest place to live and do business online.
We support the most critical organisations in the UK, the wider public sector, industry and SMEs. When incidents do occur, we provide an effective incident response to minimise harm to the UK, help with recovery and learn lessons for the future.
More specifically, the NCSC:
- Understands cyber security and distils this knowledge into practical guidance that we make available to all.
- Responds to cyber security incidents to reduce the harm they cause to organisations and the wider UK.
- Uses industry and academic expertise to nurture the UK’s cyber security capability.
- Reduces risks to the UK by securing • public and private sector networks.
Launched in October 2016, the NCSC has headquarters in London and brings together expertise from CESG (the information assurance arm of GCHQ), the Centre for Cyber Assessment, CERT-UK and the Centre for Protection of National Infrastructure.
By building on the best of what we already have, the NCSC provides a single point of contact for SMEs, larger organisations, government agencies and departments. We also work collaboratively with other law enforcement, defence, the UK’s intelligence and security agencies and our international partners.
National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) – a year on
A report marking the first anniversary of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has shone a light on the work the organisation has done to make the UK the safest place to live and work online.
The NCSC, part of GCHQ, brought together elements of its parent organisation with previously separate parts of government and intelligence to create a single, one-stop-shop for UK cyber security. While there is still much work to be done, in its first 12 months the organisation has prevented thousands of attacks, provided vital support for the UK’s Armed Forces and managed hundreds of incidents.
The NCSC has also made an impact on the future of cyber security, helping to foster a talent pipeline of the next generation of experts and working with business and academia to create a culture where technology can thrive
Jeremy Fleming, Director of GCHQ, says: “In an increasingly digital world, cyber is playing an ever more important part in our daily lives and in the UK’s approach to security. The threats to the UK are evolving rapidly as technology advances. Our response has been to transform to stay ahead of them.
“The NCSC is a pivotal part of that transformation. It is a critical component not only of GCHQ, where it benefits from the data and expertise it has access to as part of the intelligence community, but of how the government works to keep the UK safe.
“The NCSC has brought together unparalleled skills, capabilities and partnerships and in its first year has made enormous strides in increasing and improving our cyber capabilities. It is in the front line in protecting the UK against a growing number of cyber-attacks.”
Ciaran Martin, CEO of the NCSC, says: “Cyber security is crucial to our national security and to our prosperity. We’re incredibly proud of what we have achieved in our first year at the National Cyber Security Centre, bringing together some of the best cyber security brains in the country in a single place.
“But the threat remains very real and growing – further attacks will happen and there is much more for us to do to make the UK the safest place in the world to live and do business online. We look forward to working with our partners at home and abroad in the year ahead in pursuit of that vital goal.”
While operational since October 2016, the NCSC’s new London headquarters were opened by HM The Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh in February 2017.
As well as co-ordinating the government’s response to over 820 significant incidents, the NCSC has prevented waves of attacks through its Active Cyber Defence programme. The NCSC is proud to deliver vital work nationally and internationally as part of GCHQ and over the last year has worked with more than 50 countries across five continents, including signing NATO’s ground-breaking cyber Memorandum of Understanding.
In closing, it is worth highlighting that the UK Government is fully committed to defending against cyber threats and address the cyber skills gap to develop and grow talent. The NCSC was created as part of the five-year National Cyber Security Strategy (NCSS) announced in 2016, supported by £1.9 billion of transformational investment.
The National Cyber Security Centre
