Third Sector

Relevant information for Third Sector organisations

What is cyber resilience

Cyber resilience is about ensuring that your organisation is prepared for a cyber attack and can continue to operate when it happens.

Cyber security is about protecting your digital systems and data to help ensure you are not a target of malicious cyber activity, reducing the risk of cyber attack.

Why is it important within third sector

Cyber resilience is just another part of overall business resilience which is about making sure that you have a plan in place to keep operating, even when things go wrong. As organisations move online, they are more vulnerable which can result in:

  • loss of service
  • people you work with/staff being put at risk
  • financial and reputational impact

Unfortunately the third sector is not exempt, according to 2026 UK Cyber Security Breaches Survey around three in ten (28%) charities experienced some form of cyber security breach/attack in last twelve months. The good news is that taking the first steps to staying safe online  is easier than you might think. There is lots of support out there to help you start to prioritise cyber risk, protect against the most common threats and ensure you are prepared to respond to cyber incidents when they inevitably occur.

Find out more here.

What can third sector do

Visit SCVO page to find out more.

What are CyberScotland doing to support third sector

SCVO have a Third Sector Cyber Resilience Co-ordinator, who works closely with Scottish Government through the CyberScotland partnership, to support Scotland’s third sector in their journey to becoming more cyber resilient. They are guided by a working group, made up of a range of people from across the sector, who help shape and guide a programme of work to implement Scottish Government’s Strategic Framework for a Cyber Resilient Scotland Action Plan. 

Third Sector Action Plan

Relevant Resources

Small Charity Guide

The advice in the Cyber Security: Small Charity Guide will significantly increase your protection from the most common types of cyber crime. The five topics covered in the guidance are easy to understand, and are free or cost little to implement. 

Read more Small Charity Guide in modal dialog

Available Support

  • Read the CyberScotland Advice & Guidance to further understand the risk to you and your organisations
  • Scottish charities are required to report cyber crime to OSCR via raise a concern form, as well as report an incident.
  • If you are interested in your organisation becoming more cyber resilient and want to discuss this further, please contact SCVO’s Cyber Resilience Co-ordinator at alison.brogan@scvo.scot
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