NCSC Annual Review 2022
Looking back at the National Cyber Security Centre's sixth year and its key developments and highlights, between 1 September 2021 and 31 August 2022.
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NCSC View: Future ecosystem challenges
A robust, self-sustaining cyber ecosystem is mission-critical for the UK’s national security interests and has a stake in making the country a global leader in critical technologies. It is also a dynamic part of the UK economy with a £10 billion contribution to the UK’s economic growth agenda.
This is why the NCSC continues to work with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to create a cyber ecosystem that can safeguard the digital landscape, nurture skills and translate them into commercial success stories.
Achieving this aim will take ambition, investment, dedication and collaboration between government, academia and industry. These partnerships can become greater than the sum of their individual parts and create the perfect environment for a dynamic and trusted ecosystem to flourish.
Whether it is finding, nurturing and developing a diverse and technically skilled workforce of the future or harnessing the innovative talents of the UK’s vibrant research community, the NCSC has focused on fortifying the UK cyber ecosystem through a series of projects and initiative, especially at the local level.
As well as nurturing talented young people into the cyber security sector via CyberFirst initiatives, the NCSC for Startups initiative continued to translate talent into jobs, opportunities and growth. So far, the alumni have raised over £422m in funding and created over 700 new roles.
A key focus of the ecosystem development work is the NCSC assurance schemes for industry. These harness the talent in the ecosystem to increase the impact of the NCSC. This year as well as relaunching schemes like Assured Consultancy and Cyber Incident Response, new schemes are being developed that will broaden the market and allow a wider cross section of industry to work with the NCSC or find support from the organisations assured by them.
While considerable progress has been made in strengthening the UK’s vibrant ecosystem there are still big challenges facing it. The 14,000 annual shortfall of staff in the sector will hold it back, as will the shortage of skills and diversity within it.
Much has been studied and written about the cyber security industry, where extensive data and research has provided key insights, evidence and lessons. This includes publications about workforce, labour market, skills and equality, diversity & inclusion. These have helped describe the issues but more importantly they have set recommendations to help address them.
I have now worked in cyber security for many years, well before the phrase was coined. What I have learned during that time is that building national capabilities takes a national effort, but delivery is most successful when it brings together the talents at a local level. Whilst we continue to deliver that national agenda through things like our support for the UK Cyber Security Council, our focus is shifting towards a more local approach. This is why we call on our many existing academic and industry partners to consider what more they can do to support these activities in their local areas.
