Isle of Man businesses can now apply for funding to support cyber security accreditation

The Office of Cyber Security and Information Assurance (OCSIA), in partnership with the Department for Enterprise, is pleased to announce that Isle of Man businesses can now apply for a 50% funding grant up to £5,000 to gain a Cyber Essentials or Cyber Essentials Plus Accreditation.

The Cyber Essentials framework was developed by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre to help businesses become more aware and secure against cyber-attacks and data breaches from technology systems. It was designed, not to replace, but to fill what was perceived as a gap as companies struggled to afford to implement larger schemes such as the ISO27000 or NIST frameworks.

Cyber Essentials has now been added as an eligible area to receive consultancy in as part of the review of the Department for Enterprise’s Business Improvement Scheme (BIS). Over the last two years the BIS has invested over £160,000 in developing local businesses. The scheme previously offered support with quality accreditations such as ISO and SALSA but the extension to offer businesses support in cyber security is essential as technology advances.

Minister for Enterprise, Laurence Skelly MHK also commented:

‘The Department for Enterprise welcomes the extension to the Business Improvement Scheme’s offering thanks to support from the Office of Cyber Security and Information Assurance. It is great to see two areas of government collaborating to develop the Island’s cyber resilience, particularly in line with the National Cyber Security Strategy which was launched last year. We hope that businesses see this as a valuable addition to the scheme and seek the help they need to improve their cyber security.’

For more information please head to www.iomdfenterprise.im/bis, email the Enterprise Support team at enterprisesupport@gov.im or call 01624 687333.