A joint security operations centre has been launched to help UK higher education institutions defend against “complex and ever-evolving” cyberattacks.
Universities have over the past year reported hundreds of cyber incidents, including 11 major attacks, that severely impacted operations and affected systems at a number of top institutions.
The new dedicated Security Operations Centre (SOC) being launched by sector agency Jisc aims to help institutions guard against multiplying cybersecurity threats and will be available to all those that are part of its Janet network.
David Batho, director of security at Jisc, said that there are significant and ongoing challenges in preventing cyberattacks within the UK, with pressure coming from state-sponsored and state-aligned warfare.
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“It is key for organisations to take responsibility, but it’s a complex, ever-evolving landscape,” he told Times Higher Education. “To keep on top of it is a challenge for organisations.”
Batho said a further issue was posed by the “problematic” lack of skills and knowledge within the sector, and concerns around staff retention.
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“Part of what SOC does is to alleviate some of these challenges that the university faces where we take some control and support universities in mitigating some of those security risks.”
Launching on 31 March, the SOC will relieve pressure on internal teams through its technology and specialist expertise, providing 24/7 protection, threat detection, and rapid incident response.
It means that threats can be detected and contained faster, hoping to minimise impact and disruption to learning and research.
Experts had recently warned that UK universities are even more vulnerable to cyberattacks as a result of the ongoing funding crisis.
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With Jisc estimating a cost of about £2 million per cyber attack, it is hoped that the SOC will be cost-effective and reduce some of the “significant” time and money spent on response.
“What we’re doing now is a lot around preventing major incidents, so we stop them before they become a problem, and part of the SOC is about proactive defence rather than a reactive defence,” said Batho.
“We’re moving from a world where we react to a cyber incident – we’re now preventing the cyber incidents from happening.”
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