NCSC Annual Review 2021

Having cyber resilient citizens is a major part of the NCSC’s mission to make the UK the safest place to live and work online. Improving cyber hygiene became even more of a priority as the pandemic took hold and more people spent time online to work, shop, socialise or communicate. The NCSC observed how cyber criminals were using the crisis to exploit new or inexperienced visitors to cyberspace and increased its engagement with the public.

As part of the Cyber Aware campaign the NCSC urged citizens and small businesses to follow practical behaviours, such as using three random words in passwords and using two-factor authentication, to ensure security online. In December it launched its first TV advertising campaign to inform citizens at a time of heightened risk as they went about Christmas shopping online.

In January the NCSC issued advice on how citizens could protect themselves from scams where their personal information had been compromised in data breaches, and it published cyber security guidance for new owners of recently acquired second-hand devices.

In February the NCSC launched a radio and digital campaign targeting at sole traders and micro-businesses, and the Cyber Action Plan: a new self-assessment tool to help users understand what steps they needed to take to improve resilience. For the first time the NCSC advertised in ethnic radio stations and used small business influencers on Instagram to help reach a wider audience from diverse backgrounds.

The Cyber Action Plan was updated in May to accommodate citizens, creating a free, tailored action plan on the recommended steps to take to reduce the chance of becoming a victim of an online attack.

The campaigns saw increased uptake of the protective actions for both citizens and sole traders and small businesses: 16% of citizens and 8%⁶ of sole traders/micro-businesses were reported to have started at least one of the protective behaviours since the marketing campaign relaunched in December 2020.

In partnership with the Department of Education, the NCSC launched an online cyber security game for children. CyberSprinters in which users race against the clock and tackle cyber security questions to score points and beat cyber villains, was aimed at 7 to 11 year-olds and came with a resource pack for primary schools and youth organisations.

⁶ According to an NCSC report published 23rd July 2020