IT and cybersecurity company Converged Communication Solutions has joined forces with Scottish charity TechFest to help other charities better protect themselves against online crime.

Through a new virtual event taking place during CyberScotland Week, the free Cyber Security Basics for Charities workshop will provide a chance to learn, question and build cyber confidence. It will be held at 11 am on Wednesday, 24 February.

The session will be delivered via video conferencing platform Zoom, featuring a 45-minute interactive presentation with a Q&A opportunity at the end.

Converged and TechFest say they aim to bring an “entry-level understanding” to those at the start of their cyber journey. Topics covered will include:

• How cybersecurity affects an organisation
• Why cybercriminals target charities
• What the different types of attacks are
• How individuals can identify risks

The tech specialists will also simplify common IT and cyber jargon and explain techniques used by hackers, such as social engineering. This pieces together information from social media profiles in order to access an individual’s personal data and hack into accounts.

As organisations have transitioned to remote working and are relying on digital communication more than ever, many employees and volunteers have fallen victim to cyber threats.

According to research from Ecclesiastical Insurance, 95% of charities now work from home. Only half of these organisations are taking the necessary steps to increase cyber protection for staff working remotely, resulting in one-third falling victim to cybercrime.

DIGIT’S 2021 #virtualevents calendar:

📅 #MarTech Summit https://t.co/JkViHnOzbF Wed 24 Feb
📅 ScotSecure #CyberSecurity Summit https://t.co/JaD886wGh9 24/ 25 Mar
📅 #DigitalEnergy Summit https://t.co/thGSfrBqlM 22 Apr
📅 DIGIT #Leader Summit https://t.co/alC1xjRvtW 26 May pic.twitter.com/XXGqh5Braw

— DIGIT (@digitfyi) January 18, 2021

Sarah Chew, managing director at TechFest, commented: “As a charity ourselves we can struggle to feel confident in the field of cybersecurity, but by working with Converged Communication Solutions we’ve been able to better our knowledge.

“We really want other charities to benefit from this information as unfortunately, charities do not have the same kind of expensive software or IT departments who specialise in this area, to help protect them from such crimes.

“Many people don’t realise the severity of sharing personal data and how easy it is for cybercriminals to use it against you, even when you think you are being cautious – and this goes for your business and personal data.

“This is why we’ve chosen to deliver this event during CyberScotland Week, which aims to make Scotland more cyber aware and resilient. The information from Converged is so informative and will really help delegates understand how we can all protect ourselves better and make us think twice about the kind of information we put online.”

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Robbie Ross, chief security officer, at Converged Communication Solutions said: “It’s a sad fact that cybercriminals do not care who they target and therefore it is vital that charities are as prepared as any business for a cyber-attack.

“Unfortunately, though, when it comes to cybersecurity, very often charities can be at a disadvantage and we want to change this. A huge perceived barrier is around lack of technical skills or know-how, but we want to assure charities that good cybersecurity practices are entirely achievable without these. It is time to take away the stigma that cybersecurity is ‘techy’ and ‘geeky’.

“Many of us do this job for the simple reason that we don’t want to see people and businesses falling victim to cybercrime, especially when there are simple steps, they can take to protect themselves.

“For this reason, we made a commitment to reach as many charities as possible this year, to arm them with the fundamentals and the tools required to more confidently protect their organisation from threats. Our partnership with TechFest underlines this ambition.

“What I would say to anyone who is wondering where on earth to start or is afraid that they won’t understand cybersecurity, is that this event has been created with you in mind.”

CyberScotland Week runs from Monday, 22 to Friday, 28 February and aims to make businesses, organisations and individuals more cyber aware and resilient.

To register for the free event, visit Eventbrite at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/137769695869.