{
  "id": 10925599,
  "title": "More than half of UK businesses lack confidence in basic cyber skills",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/more-than-half-of-uk-businesses-lack-confidence-in-basic-cyber-skills-10925599",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-30T10:04:53.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Register",
    "slug": "the-register",
    "url": "https://www.theregister.com/security/2026/09/30/more-than-half-of-uk-businesses-lack-confidence-in-basic-cyber-skills/5299991"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A recent government survey reveals that over half of UK businesses lack confidence in their ability to perform at least one basic cybersecurity task, highlighting a growing skills gap. This represents a significant increase from the previous year, despite tighter national standards and government warnings about cyber resilience. Approximately 808,000 businesses were found to be insecure in at least one of nine essential tasks such as storing data securely, configuring firewalls, and detecting and removing malware. The widening gap appears to be more pronounced in smaller businesses and charities, where cybersecurity often falls under the broader responsibilities of individuals rather than dedicated roles. Cybersecurity experts suggest that the increasing complexity of IT environments and the evolving nature of malware, facilitated by artificial intelligence, contribute to the challenge. The industry also tends to prioritize new technologies over fundamental security measures, which can lead to vulnerabilities. Despite these concerns, the public sector reported fewer cybersecurity skills gaps, yet its overall basic skills gap also increased significantly from 14 percent to 27 percent. The government has responded with the £210 million Cyber Action Plan to strengthen central government systems and introduce mandatory security requirements, but experts argue that practical support tailored to the limited resources of smaller businesses and charities is crucial to closing the skills gap.",
  "summary": "Government survey puts the figure at 808k, says detecting and removing malware most common weakness",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Register Science",
        "title": "More than half of UK businesses lack confidence in basic cyber skills",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/more-than-half-of-uk-businesses-lack-confidence-in-basic-cyber-skills",
        "published": "2026-09-30T10:04:53.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}