UK Government has launched its ‘Cyber Security Skills Immediate Impact Fund’. It’s a pilot scheme to fund cybersecurity training and encourage more people, particularly women, to go into the cyber security sector, and address what the guidance document admits is a UK cyber security skills shortage.
The fund, covering England, is open to the likes of training providers and charities, colleges and bodies offering cyber qualifications, who can show their work would benefit employers. You have until March 2 to apply, for sums of between £10,000 and £50,000 that would form up to half of the cost of a project. Any supporting evidence should be limited to what an assessor can go through in 15 minutes, says the DCMS (Department for Culture, Media and Sport).
Andy Kays, CTO at threat detection management product company, Redscan, said: “If successful, this initiative should help ease one of the most pressing challenges facing UK businesses. Too many organisations seem to think that their cyber security problems can be solved with technology, and while utilising the latest tools is important, there is no replacement for well-trained staff and the expertise of experienced cybersecurity professionals.
“It may seem like a drop in the ocean but any initiative that looks to address the cybersecurity skills gap is a welcome one. The skills shortage and lack of young people and women pursuing a career in cybersecurity is a global problem that is expected to get worse before it gets better.
“To defend against the next generation of cybercriminals, we need a larger, more diverse and better trained pool of cybersecurity talent as a top priority. The evolving threat landscape means that detecting and responding to threats has now become full-time job requiring dedicated experts that have an understanding of how attackers operate. For many businesses, identifying and training the right talent needed to defend against sophisticated adversaries has become too difficult and costly.”
