Thousands of small firms are offered 75% off cyber security training in a £2.4m scheme after a string of hacks

Cyber security minister Baroness Liz Lloyd is to announce the Cyber Essentials First Step Fund at the National Cyber Security Centre's Annual Review, cutting the cost of basic certification to as little as £80. The scheme, open to SMEs and micro businesses not certified in the past four years, runs until March 2027 or until the £2.4m pot is exhausted. Lloyd said firms were "particularly vulnerable in the age of rising cyber threats" and the government would not let "malicious actors take advantage."

The announcement follows a string of major hacks, including the theft of £4.7bn from Binance wallets last week — a heist that broke all previous records for cryptocurrency theft.

Blockchain intelligence firms have attributed the Binance raid to North Korean hackers, and Asos customers were separately warned that their personal data had been accessed in October.

Government estimates put the average cost of a significant cyberattack on a UK business at £195,000 — funds that would otherwise go towards investment and jobs.