New Personal Internet Protection service provides an extra layer of security on personal devices for high-risk individuals, according to a press release.
A new cyber defence service, launched on day two of CYBERUK 2024, offers thousands of people at higher risk free support to boost online defences.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) – a part of GCHQ – announced the new service on Wednesday to help prevent political candidates and election officials from falling foul of spear-phishing, malware, and other threats during this major election year.
Political candidates, election officials, and others at high risk of being targeted online have been given access to support from the UK’s cyber experts to help boost their digital security.
The new Personal Internet Protection service provides an extra layer of security on personal devices by warning users if they try to visit a domain known to be malicious and by blocking outgoing traffic to these domains.
The opt-in service, launched at CYBERUK 2024 in Birmingham, forms part of a wider package of cyber support on offer ahead of the next general election to individuals and organisations that play an important role in UK democracy. This follows the government’s recent announcements about attempts by Russian Intelligence Services and China state-affiliated actors to carry out malicious activity targeting UK institutions and individuals, including parliamentarians.
To coincide with CYBERUK, the NCSC and international partners from five other countries have also produced new advice for civil society groups, whose work advancing democratic values puts them under threat of transnational repression by state-sponsored actors.
Jonathon Ellison, NCSC Director for National Resilience and Future Technology, said: “Individuals who play important roles in our democracy are an attractive target for cyber actors seeking to disrupt or otherwise undermine our open and free society. That’s why the NCSC has ramped up our support for people at higher risk of being targeted online to ensure they can better protect their accounts and devices from attacks. In this significant year of elections around the world, I urge individuals eligible for our services to sign up and to follow our guidance now to bolster their defences.”
The initiative is co-chaired by the NCSC and the United States’ Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, with agency representation from Austria, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, and Romania.
At the latest dialogue, participants provided updates on the progress being made in their countries to safeguard civil society groups from cyber attacks and agreed to continue working together to raise the collective resilience of global democracy.
