Nationwide Building Society joins cyber resilience effort for UK SMEs

Nationwide Building Society has been named a National Ambassador for the National Cyber Resilience Centre Group (NCRCG), a move aimed at enhancing the cyber defences of UK small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The building society will join a group of National Ambassador partners, which includes notable organisations such as Aviva, CGI, Chainalysis, CompTIA, HP, ISC2, Mastercard, Microsoft, NatWest Group, Resilience, SANS Institute, SAS, Sir Robert McAlpine, The Very Group, and Trustify. The NCRCG is part of the Cyber Resilience Centre network, which collaborates with nine regional centres to offer cyber resilience services through Cyber PATH, a talent development initiative for university students.

Nationwide will collaborate with the NCRCG to implement a campaign aimed at its SME suppliers, helping to bolster their cyber security. This campaign will involve giving SMEs access to specialised support from CRCs and offering information on cyber security risks and the effectiveness of the Cyber Essentials standard in reducing cyber breach risks.

Sharon Gould, Supplier Security and Resilience Manager at Nationwide Building Society, explained Nationwide's commitment by stating: "Protecting our customers against fraud and scams and preventing criminals at source is a priority at Nationwide. It's vital all areas of the supply chain work together sharing resources and the latest technology to stay ahead of criminals. We are pleased to be joining forces with NCRCG and working closely with the policing community and other National Ambassador organisations."

Detective Superintendent Ian Kirby, CEO at NCRCG, expressed his thoughts on Nationwide's involvement: "We are so pleased to be joined by an organisation as well-established as Nationwide and one which can act as a direct conduit to the type of SMEs our network is working day in, day out to reach. It is excellent to see our National Ambassador programme continuing to attract notable organisations like Nationwide who believe in the significance of our work. With our Ambassadors' support, we will continue to do all we can to provide our nation's SMEs with access to the cyber guidance and advice they need and, in doing so, make the UK as strong as it can be against cybercrime."