A nationwide search for cyber security hopefuls has led to 55 beginning a ten-week course. The candidates, including a former bartender, a psychiatrist and a journalist, will be trained by industry practitioners. Employers will be able to track their progress through an online portal and have the opportunity to recruit students at two recruitment fairs.
Minister of State for Digital and Culture Matt Hancock said: “I congratulate all the students selected following an extremely competitive application process and encourage them to make the most of this fantastic opportunity. They will bring a diverse range of skills and experiences from different walks of life to the fight against cyber threats and attacks.
“We are investing £1.9 billion over five years to make the UK the safest place to live and do business online and this academy is a key part of that work.”
The candidates were selected from around 4,000 applications from across the country and come from diverse backgrounds; roughly half from non-IT backgrounds. All candidates went through a six-stage selection, starting with a pre-qualification assessment, then an application form, aptitude assessment, telephone interview and pre-qualification, and, finally, a face-to-face interview.
The pilot course, delivered by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport with the information security training provider SANS Institute, is funded by the Government as part of the National Cyber Security Strategy.
The students will complete hands-on exercises in real-world scenarios such as how to respond to a virus outbreak, study the ‘psychology’ of hackers, build a watertight business network and learn how to help firms tackle the most common threats. Once they have the computing and IT security fundamentals foundations, they will progress onto more technical subjects, including hacking tools and techniques. They will be taught by security practitioners from SANS.
The training will involve a weekly exam, technology labs and assessments. Classes include how to hack into an Internet of Things (IoT) connected device. Graduates will also leave with a Global Information Assurance Certification, which tests a candidate’s knowledge plus their ability to put that knowledge into practice.
At the time of the recruitment fair, candidates would be half way through their training, including completion of the technology and security fundamentals course, and will be able to share test scores with prospective employers. SANS’ previous UK Cyber Academies have retrained people from law graduates to parking attendants and supplied qualified cyber people to workplaces including NATO and Airbus.
UK Managing Director at SANS Institute Stephen Jones, pictured, said: “Employers can be reassured these candidates have already proven themselves to be exceptionally talented. The students successfully completed a six stage, highly competitive, assessment process. They have all demonstrated they have the right aptitude to excel in a cyber-security career and will now receive world class training.
“We are pleased to see students from a wide range of backgrounds, not just traditional IT roles. The cyber security profession requires a wide range of skills and, as this selection process has shown, there are budding security experts not just in the IT sector, but outside of it too.”
And Catherine Irvine, Senior Business and Development Manager, Security Operations Centre Enterprise and Cyber Security, Fujitsu, said: “Fujitsu, as a provider of Information Security Services and employer of individuals with cyber skills, is pleased to support the 2017 SANS Cyber Security Training Academy. The Academy is an innovative way to develop the skills of individuals in the techniques, tactics and processes needed to fight cyber-crime.
“It gives individuals that might not previously have thought they had the aptitude for a career in cyber security the opportunity to develop their talent which in turn provides organisations such as Fujitsu a great opportunity to meet and hopefully employ people with these valuable skills which are in short supply.
“At the previous Academy I had the pleasure to meet the students at an Employer Fair and was awed with the opportunity the Academy gives individuals and amazed at the students’ talents.”
Visit: https://www.cyber-academy.co.uk/retraining.
