Ukraine crisis: NCSC advise boosting cyber security

Following Russia’s unprovoked, premeditated attack on Ukraine, the National Cyber Security Centre continues to call upon charities and other organisations in the UK to bolster their online defences.

While the NCSC isn’t aware of any current specific threats to UK organisations in relation to events in and around Ukraine, there has been an historical pattern of cyber attacks on Ukraine with international consequences.

The guidance encourages organisations to follow actionable steps that reduce the risk of falling victim to an attack. The steps include:

1. Checking your system patching
2. Verifying access controls
3. Ensuring defences are working
4. Reviewing your backups
5. Checking third-party access

There are plenty of other steps that charities can take to boost your charity’s defences. The NCSC’s free Early Warning tool can alert you if there are signs of a vulnerability or of a potential cyber attack on your system, and they have other tools to prevent spoofing and help protect against phishing.

Learn more about their excellent free tools in our earlier article

New to Cyber Security? It’s never too late to make improvements, and you don’t need to be a techie to make a difference. Show this article and our the below video to the trustees in your charity.

Small charities can start making simple changes with the NCSC’s Small Charity Guide, and we have a wide range of articles, webinars, products and videos available right here to guide you through.

For more information on cyber security and how to bolster your defences, check out the guidance below.