Government Urges Cyber Security Startups To Apply For GCHQ Accelerator Scheme

The government is urging cyber security startups to apply for a GCHQ funding programme, which has been extended from three to nine months.

Applications for the GCHQ Cyber Accelerator have now been opened for startups and entrepreneurs working in the field, and aims to help such firms take their cyber security ideas and developments and scale them into products and services.

The government is looking for such startups to contribute to the UK’s blooming cyber security sector, which hit a healthy £22 billion in 2015.

Accelerating startups

Delivered by Telefonica’s subsidiary Wayra UK in partnership with GCHQ, the National Cyber Security Centre and DCMS, the accelerator will give selected startups access to expertise in the world of cyber security to help them develop their products and services.

“We are working hard to make Britain the best place to start and grow a digital business and the safest place to be online,” said Matt Hancock, minister for digital.

“The GCHQ Cyber Accelerator is a vital part of this work and has already helped some of the most innovative cyber security startups develop cutting-edge new products and services.

“I’m pleased to announce the programme is being extended and encourage the nation’s talented entrepreneurs to apply.”

The GCHQ Cyber Accelerator is part of the government’s fiver year £1.9 billion National Cyber Security Strategy, which aims to bolster the UK’s cyber defences while building the nation’s skills and capabilities in the field.

It also appears to be a way to invigorate the economy as well as protect the country from cyber threats.

And given how the WannaCry ransomware wreaked havoc on the NHS, it comes as no surprise the government is looking to support UK startups that have the technology to defend against such hack attacks and cyber weaknesses.

The government’s involvement in technology startup centres is nothing new, with government-backed Digital Catapult centres across the UK designed to foster innovation in and beyond London.

Think you’re clued up on cyber security in 2016?Take our quiz and find out!