Annual Review
NCSC Annual Review 2025
Looking back at the National Cyber Security Centre's ninth year and its key developments and highlights, between 1 September 2024 and 31 August 2025.
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Timeline 2024-2025
Highlights covering the period 1 September 2024 to 31 August 2025.
September 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Attribution | 5 | UK and allies uncover Russian military unit carrying out cyber attacks and digital sabotage for the first time. |
| Advice | 18 | The NCSC and allies issue advice to counter China-linked campaign targeting thousands of devices. |
| Speech | 19 | The NCSC CEO discusses how the global threat picture remains unpredictable at Aspen Cyber Summit with fellow Five Eyes cyber security leaders. |
| Alert | 27 | UK and US issue alert over cyber actors working on behalf of Iranian state. |
October 2024 | ||
| News | 7 | Dr Richard Horne starts his role as the new CEO of the NCSC. |
| Guidance | 7 | The NCSC publishes new guidance that helps CISOs communicate with Boards to improve oversight of their cyber risk. |
| News | 15 | All UK schools now eligible for free PDNS cyber resilience service following successful rollout. |
| Speech | 16 | The NCSC CEO calls for greater global resilience against online security threats at Singapore International Cyber Week. |
| News | 23 | Cyber Essentials marks a decade of boosting businesses’ cyber defences with an event in the House of Lords. |
| Campaign | 26 | Five Eyes launch Secure Innovation guidance for tech startups. |
November 2024 | ||
| Campaign | 18 | UK’s cyber security and law enforcement bodies launch Black Friday campaign urging citizens to turn on 2-step verification. |
December 2024 | ||
| Speech | 3 | The NCSC CEO describes the cyber risk facing the nation as “widely underestimated” at the launch of the NCSC annual review. |
January 2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Consultation | 14 | Counter ransomware consultation launched by the Home Office with support from the NCSC. |
| Blog post | 15 | The NCSC highlights the merits of choosing passkeys over passwords to help keep online accounts more secure. |
February 2025 | ||
| Guidance | 4 | The NCSC and international cyber agencies unveil new guidelines to secure edge devices from increasing threat. |
| Guidance | 5 | The NCSC and the NPSA develop guidance and resources for the UK’s research and innovation sector to combat the increasing threat. |
| Event | 13 | The NCSC CEO attends Munich Security Conference and speaks on a panel about “Emerging Cyber Threat” along with counterparts from Germany and Ukraine. |
March 2025 | ||
| Campaign | 1 | NCSC joins the government’s Stop! Think Fraud campaign and highlights cyber security advice to help citizens stay safe online. |
| News | 8 | Winning teams from 2024/25 CyberFirst Girls competition attended a prize-giving ceremony at Jodrell Bank. |
| Guidance | 20 | New guidance from the NCSC outlines a three-phase timeline for organisations to transition to quantum-resistant encryption methods by 2035. |
| Blog post | 28 | The NCSC welcomes DSIT’s Cyber Security and Resilience Policy Statement which sets out a series of legislative proposals that will help tackle the increasingly prolific and diverse cyber threats to the UK. |
April 2025 | ||
| Event | 1 | The NCSC CEO co-hosts an industry roundtable in Manchester with NCC Group |
| Training | 8 | DSIT and the NCSC launch the Cyber Governance Code of Practice and Training to enable Boards to govern cyber risks with confidence. |
| Advisory | 9 | The NCSC and international partners publish new information and mitigation measures for those at high risk from two spyware variants - BADBAZAAR and MOONSHINE. |
May 2025 | ||
| News | 1 | The NCSC leads HMG’s response in supporting the retail sector after a number of incidents affect major high street names such as Marks & Spencer and Co-op Group. |
| Event | 6 | The NCSC hosts CYBERUK, the UK Government’s flagship cyber security event, which convened over 2,000 delegates in Manchester. |
| Assurance | 8 | The Cyber Resilience Test Facilities and Cyber Adversary Simulation schemes mark a significant step forward in NCSC’s mission to enhance the UK’s cyber resilience. |
| Advisory | 21 | UK and allies expose Russian intelligence campaign targeting western logistics and technology organisations. |
| Technical | 22 | The NCSC and DSIT launch new ETSI standard for AI to set a benchmark for securing AI systems and protecting them from evolving cyber threats. |
June 2025 | ||
| Guidance | 4 | New principles developed with industry and government partners to help organisations achieve the conditions to underpin a cyber secure culture. |
July 2025 | ||
| Scheme | 10 | The NCSC, NPSA, DSIT and DBT launch the Secure Innovation Security Reviews Scheme to support the UK’s emerging technology sector. |
| Attribution | 18 | In support of UK sanctions against GRU actors, the NCSC leads international attribution for Russian military intelligence group APT28. |
| News | 21 | For the first time, BBC cameras are permitted to film behind the scenes at the NCSC as part of its dedicated programme on ransomware. |
August 2025 | ||
| News | 6 | Cyber Assessment Framework v4.0 launched to support essential service providers in strengthening cyber risk management amid growing threats. |
| Attribution | 27 | UK and allies expose China-based technology companies for enabling global cyber campaign against critical networks. |