Almost a billion early stage cyber attacks and user attempts to access dangerous websites have been blocked by the National Cyber Security Centre’s (NCSC’s) Share and Defend service, a joint project developed with partner BT that is designed to protect Britons from fraud and cyber crime.
Quietly launched earlier this year, Share and Defend collates data gleaned from public reports made to the NCSC, industry threat intelligence experts, protective domain name service (PDNS) providers and takedown actions. These datasets are then shared with internet service provider (ISP) partners, which in turn filter them through their own DNS platforms to stop their customers from accessing malicious websites.
This all happens in close-to real time, enabling ISPs to cut fraudsters running phishing or fake retail sites off from their potential victims at scale.
“At a time when we are all increasingly dependent on technology to run our lives, the NCSC’s Share and Defend service is helping to protect the British public at an unprecedented scale,” said NCSC CEO Richard Horne.
“As one of our Active Cyber Defence services, this capability demonstrates the impact that we can have when we intervene to block malicious activity, working alongside industry partners.
“Collaboration is essential for proactively countering the threat, and we look forward to extending the success of the programme driving up our national cyber resilience,” he added.
BT Consumer CEO Claire Gillies said: “Our role as a founding partner of the Share and Defend programme aligns with the priority we put on protecting the UK. As cyber threats continue to grow for consumers and businesses across the country, today’s announcement demonstrates the value of strong, coordinated action. Ongoing collaboration between government and industry is essential to safeguard the UK’s digital landscape and ensure a safer online environment for all.”
Partners sought
Share and Defend’s launch partners include household names such as TalkTalk and Vodafone, as well as national education and research network operator Jisc, telecoms wholesaler PlatformX Communications (PXC), and the Cyber Defence Alliance, a London-based threat intel non-profit.
Horne said the NCSC was still looking to onboard more partners to extend Share and Defend’s reach across consumers and businesses.
Meanwhile, security minister Dan Jarvis, speaking at the Financial Times’ Cyber Resilience Summit 2025 in London, hailed the partnership as an example of how UK government agencies are working with private sector businesses to keep the UK safe from online harms, ahead of the anticipated January 2026 publication of Westminster’s National Cyber Action Plan.
This plan follows on from the four-year-old National Cyber Strategy, which Jarvis said was too long, unclear about the government’s role, and failed to be explicit enough in what was expected from businesses.
“Following this year’s attacks, there can be no doubt on the actions that must be taken,” he said, referring to major incidents at the likes of Marks & Spencer and Jaguar Land Rover.
“That’s why we are publishing a National Cyber Action Plan, which will have defined roles and tasks for everyone involved to stay cyber secure,” added Jarvis. “It will be a business-first plan – written for businesses, written with businesses. I can confirm today that we’ve already consulted over 400 individual partners, across business, critical national infrastructure and with international partners.
“The action plan will set clear expectations for businesses, tailored to companies of all sizes and revenues,” he said. “It will be a crucial part of our plan to make the UK the hardest possible target for cyber criminals to operate. I want to send a clear message to cyber criminals that we are on to you. Every day we are finding out more about who you are. And we will hunt you down, and we will bring you to justice.”
