Highlands and Islands Enterprise launches training to help businesses protect themselves from cyber attacks

Cyber security - Image credit: Holyrood

Highlands and Islands Enterprise has launched a project to help businesses protect themselves against cyber attacks.

The Cyber Strong business project – launched to coincide with Digital Leaders Cyber Resilience Week, which runs from 11 to 15 September – will help businesses and social enterprises achieve Cyber Essentials accreditation.

Cyber Essentials is an industry and government-recognised certification scheme that helps businesses minimise the risk of a cyber attack, and shows they are taking appropriate measures to protect themselves and their clients’ data.

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Cyber Strong is one of a cohort of projects for 2017 based in Scotland which are part-funded by the UK’s National Cyber Security Strategy Programme.

The HIE project will include a one day intensive workshop, one to one support to develop a cyber resilience plan and the agency will re-imburse successful businesses achieving the accreditation.

The workshops begin on Monday in Orkney, followed by Shetland and Inverness the same week, then they will continue across the Highlands, Moray, the Western Isles and Argyll on various dates until mid-November.

Stuart Robertson, head of digital at HIE, said:  “All businesses are a potential target for an attack, particularly if they don’t take basic precautionary measures to protect themselves. 

“Cyber criminals constantly scan websites, systems and devices to look for vulnerabilities, and any business that relies on computerised systems for payroll, marketing via social media or a website, or who have booking systems with databases of customer details can have information valuable to a criminal.

“Our businesses and organisations recognise the risks in the digital world.

“Cyber Strong is here to help people manage these risks and to ensure the region provides online services which their customers can have confidence in.”

Hugh Aitken, chief executive of CBI Scotland and chair of the National Cyber Resilience Leaders Board, said: “It is wonderful to see such a broad range of cyber resilience projects taking place across Scotland.

“I believe they will genuinely help people, businesses and charities to be safer and more resilient online, and this in turn will enable them to take advantage of the opportunities for innovation, careers and economic growth that the digital world presents.

“These diverse and ambitious projects will bring Scotland closer to becoming a leading cyber resilient nation.”