BT today announced an expansion of its managed secure SD-WAN solution for business and public sector customers in the UK with new SSE (Security Service Edge) capabilities, leveraging technology from Fortinet® (NASDAQ: FTNT), the global cybersecurity leader driving the convergence of networking and security. The expanded software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) service will help customers seamlessly transition from managed SD-WAN to secure access service edge (SASE), and forge ahead with their digital transformation by protecting access to their applications and data in the cloud.

Customers’ use of cloud technology is intensifying as they increasingly digitalise their businesses, shifting apps and data from their own private datacentres into public cloud services. At the same time, their organisations are more dispersed than ever, with people and devices accessing digital services from everywhere. 

BT’s existing managed SD-WAN service already provides customers with the flexibility to mix different connectivity options for each of their sites with a leading next-generation firewall. The company is now partnering with Fortinet to enhance this with new AI-powered SSE capabilities to provide a firewall-as-a-service, secure web gateway, cloud access security broker and zero-trust network access to provide a complete, managed SASE solution. This will enhance customers’ oversight of their networks backed with AI-powered proactive threat detection and data protection via BT’s unified monitoring services in the UK. It can also help customers create a zero-trust infrastructure by continuously interrogating the credentials of users and devices attempting to access the network either on the edge or out and about.   

“Our partnership with Fortinet is another signal to customers that BT has their back as they invest to become even more successful, creative, digital businesses,” said Matt Swinden, director, digital connectivity, BT. “Our new managed service enables them to provide consistent, seamless and secure experiences to their users of cloud-hosted digital services regardless of where they are accessing them from. This will help customers manage risk as they innovate with the latest connected technologies from IoT to AI.”

“Building upon our decade-long partnership, we’re proud to collaborate on the new SASE service with BT to enable its UK customers to converge networking and security,” said Nirav Shah, Vice President, Products and Solutions, Fortinet. “SASE complements the cybersecurity platform approach to delivering integrated security and secure network access regardless of where users are located. By combining Fortinet’s cutting-edge SASE and secure networking solutions with a leading choice of fixed and 5G access networks from BT, customers can have a nimble, robust, and  more secure network to help them get the best from the cloud.”

As part of the companies’ longstanding collaboration, BT has earned over 750 Fortinet accreditations, including Regional Partner status as part of the Engage Partner Program and UK Partner of the Year 2023, while Fortinet achieved Critical Partner status with BT Security. The managed service is powered by Fortinet Secure SD-WAN which was recently named a Leader in the 2024 Gartner Magic Quadrant for SD-WAN, marking the fifth consecutive year it has been recognized.

ENDS

Notes to editors

SASE

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) is a cloud architecture model that combines network and security-as-a-service functions together and delivers them as a single cloud service.  Conceptually, SASE extends networking and security capabilities beyond where they’re typically available. This lets work-from-anywhere and remote workers, to take advantage of firewall as a service (FWaaS), secure web gateway (SWG), zero-trust network access (ZTNA), and a medley of threat detection functions.  SASE is composed of Security Service Edge (SSE) and SD-WAN.

The term SASE (pronounced “sassy”) was first described by Gartner in an August 2019 report called, “The Future of Network Security in the Cloud.” Gartner notes that in the SASE market trend report, "Customer demands for simplicity, scalability, flexibility, low latency, and pervasive security force convergence of the WAN edge and network security markets.”

The BT-managed Fortinet service leverages a number of solutions, including:

• Fortinet Secure SD-WAN, which sends application traffic via a customer’s wide area network (WAN) links, using policies set by them to optimise user experience
• FortiSwitch, which provides local area network (LAN) ports for connecting additional wired devices such as desktop PC's, access points and point of sale machines.
• FortiAP Access Points, which extend Wi-Fi coverage in larger buildings simply with zero-touch deployment, and no licences to manage. Enjoy broad visibility, automated protection, and integrated threat intelligence.
• Mobile Data Access provides instant connectivity over 4G or 5G for rapid site set up and short-term needs, as well as a backup or active-active with a primary connection. All underpinned by EE; the UK’s leading mobile network.
• Fortinet Next-Generation Firewalls provide enterprise security at any edge, and at any scale on all WAN and LAN traffic as it passes through.
• FortiSASE, a cloud-delivered service that combines network and security functionalities, protecting users and devices when they are off a company's network by using common security policies and functionality similar to on-premises environments.

About the cyber security threat

Cyber security breaches and attacks remain a common threat. According to its latest figures, BT detects over 2,000 signals of potential cyber-attacks every second — over 200 million per day. It also finds web-connected devices are scanned over 1,000 times a day by known malicious sources — an average of once every 90 seconds. While some scans are conducted legitimately for security monitoring, three in four (78 per cent) are not harmless — indicating that hackers are looking for weaknesses in the online systems of businesses and essential public services, as smart tech becomes common. BT’s data revealed a 1,234 per cent annual rise in new malicious internet protocol (IP) scanners recorded across its networks in the 12 months to July 2024. The increase reflects how cyber criminals are increasingly scanning for vulnerabilities through automated, ‘one time use’ disposable bots, in an attempt to evade existing blocking and security measures.

BT’s analysis also showed that IT, defence and financial services are the three most targeted industries for cyber-attacks.  

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally. Magic Quadrant is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Gartner, Magic Quadrant for SD-WAN, Jonathan Forest, Karen Brown, Nauman Raja, 30 September 2024

About Fortinet

Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) is a driving force in the evolution of cybersecurity and the convergence of networking and security. Our mission is to secure people, devices, and data everywhere, and today we deliver cybersecurity everywhere you need it with the largest integrated portfolio of over 50 enterprise-grade products. Well over half a million customers trust Fortinet's solutions, which are among the most deployed, most patented, and most validated in the industry. The Fortinet Training Institute, one of the largest and broadest training programs in the industry, is dedicated to making cybersecurity training and new career opportunities available to everyone. Collaboration with esteemed organizations from both the public and private sectors, including CERTs, government entities, and academia, is a fundamental aspect of Fortinet’s commitment to enhance cyber resilience globally. FortiGuard Labs, Fortinet’s elite threat intelligence and research organization, develops and utilizes leading-edge machine learning and AI technologies to provide customers with timely and consistently top-rated protection and actionable threat intelligence. Learn more at https://www.fortinet.com, the Fortinet Blog, and FortiGuard Labs.  

Copyright © 2024 Fortinet, Inc. All rights reserved. The symbols ® and ™ denote respectively federally registered trademarks and common law trademarks of Fortinet, Inc., its subsidiaries and affiliates. Fortinet’s trademarks include, but are not limited to, the following: Fortinet, the Fortinet logo, FortiGate, FortiOS, FortiGuard, FortiCare, FortiAnalyzer, FortiManager, FortiASIC, FortiClient, FortiCloud, FortiMail, FortiSandbox, FortiADC, FortiAI, FortiAIOps, FortiAntenna, FortiAP, FortiAPCam, FortiAuthenticator, FortiCache, FortiCall, FortiCam, FortiCamera, FortiCarrier, FortiCASB, FortiCentral, FortiConnect, FortiController, FortiConverter, FortiCSPM, FortiCWP, FortDAST, FortiDB, FortiDDoS, FortiDeceptor, FortiDeploy, FortiDevSec, FortiEDR, FortiExplorer, FortiExtender, FortiFirewall, FortiFlex FortiFone, FortiGSLB, FortiGuest, FortiHypervisor, FortiInsight, FortiIsolator, FortiLAN, FortiLink, FortiMonitor, FortiNAC, FortiNDR, FortiPenTest, FortiPhish, FortiPoint, FortiPolicy, FortiPortal, FortiPresence, FortiProxy, FortiRecon, FortiRecorder, FortiSASE, FortiSDNConnector, FortiSEC, FortiSIEM, FortiSMS, FortiSOAR, FortiStack, FortiSwitch, FortiTester, FortiToken, FortiTrust, FortiVoice, FortiWAN, FortiWeb, FortiWiFi, FortiWLC, FortiWLM and FortiXDR. Other trademarks belong to their respective owners. Fortinet has not independently verified statements or certifications herein attributed to third parties and Fortinet does not independently endorse such statements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, nothing herein constitutes a warranty, guarantee, contract, binding specification or other binding commitment by Fortinet or any indication of intent related to a binding commitment, and performance and other specification information herein may be unique to certain environments. 

Business customers to benefit from BT’s resilient and secure solutions combined with MTN’s presence on the African continent 

Today, BT and MTN Business announced a strategic alliance which will offer world class security and communications services to business customers across Africa.

New and existing MTN Business customers will get access to a raft of solutions, including cloud-based security and consultancy, managed connectivity, and voice services which will be delivered seamlessly as part of MTN’s Enterprise portfolio, meeting local regulatory and compliance requirements. 

The two leading operators will collaborate closely to enhance each other’s strengths. Customers will benefit from BT’s leading-edge technology combined with MTN’s strong presence on the ground and proximity to customers.

The first offering by BT and MTN will be a Security Operations Centre (SOC)-service, which will enable customers to consistently monitor and improve their cyber-security while preventing, detecting, analysing, and responding to cyber-security incidents. The new service is based on BT’s cloud-based Security Incident and Event Management (SIEM) service, which combines the leading technologies with BT’s unparalleled track record in securing leading global organisations.

With a subscription-based model that requires no capital investment, and BT’s accredited security team providing 24x7 monitoring and in-life support, the service will be scaled up and available immediately to MTN’s existing and new customers. The partnership is evidence of MTN Business’s ongoing drive to provide digital solutions, world class services and innovation to businesses across the continent.

MTN will also tap into BT’s wide range of Unified Communications and Collaboration (UCC) solutions, including the provision of wholesale voice, Microsoft Teams voice, and global SIP solutions.

Alessandro Adriani, indirect sales director, BT, said: “The world’s leading banks, healthcare providers, energy companies and governments put their trust in BT to connect and secure their operations. We look forward to working with MTN to bring the same cutting-edge services and solutions to businesses across the African continent.”

“MTN Business continues to deliver innovative solutions to ensure the benefits of the digital economy are expanded to more people and entities across Africa. As this growth happens, however, it is imperative to manage risk. MTN Business is excited about the potential this alliance has to offer and is committed to providing solutions that ensure businesses thrive in the digital economy of the future”, says Wanda Matandela, Chief Enterprise Business Officer at MTN.

ENDS

About the MTN South Africa

Launched in 1994, MTN South Africa is a subsidiary of MTN Group, a leading emerging market operator with a clear vision to lead the delivery of a bold new digital world to our customers. We are inspired by our belief that everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code ‘MTN’. Our strategy is Ambition 2025: Leading digital solutions for Africa’s progress.

Follow MTN:                                      

www.twitter.com/MTNza

www.linkedin.com/company/mtn

^{IDC MarketScape vendor analysis model is designed to provide an overview of the competitive fitness of ICT suppliers in a given market.  The research methodology utilizes a rigorous scoring methodology based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria that results in a single graphical illustration of each vendor’s position within a given market. The Capabilities score measures vendor product, go-to-market and business execution in the short-term. The Strategy score measures alignment of vendor strategies with customer requirements in a 3-5-year timeframe. Vendor market share is represented by the size of the circles.} 
 

• BT named as a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: European Managed Security Services 2022 Vendor Assessment
• Report recognises BT’s security capabilities, research and investment, and collaborative relationships with customers, vendors and academia
• The positioning follows BT’s investment in cyber risk assessment company Safe Security and the launch of transformational Eagle-i platform in 2021

BT was today named as a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: European Managed Security Services 2022 Vendor Assessment report. BT’s security team provides solutions to consumers, governments and businesses around the world, and protects the company’s global network against around 200,000 cyber-attacks per month. The placement reflects BT’s “combination of pan-European network assets and proven experience and capabilities in security”.

BT was recognised for its ability to seamlessly integrate its security portfolio with wider network and cloud solutions, and for its wider emphasis on security innovation and partnerships across leading academic and research institutions. Its recent investment in Safe Security was also highlighted, as their risk assessment and prediction capabilities were seen as becoming increasingly important in light of recent supply chain attacks such as SolarWinds.

Last year, BT launched its transformational new cyber defence platform ‘Eagle-i', which incorporates AI to advance the speed and capability of its security operations. The IDC MarketScape report stated that the use of proprietary technology in Eagle-i, and the platform’s ability to draw on threat intelligence from BT’s extensive European network infrastructure, “makes it hard to match precisely by other MSSPs (Managed Security Service Providers).”

Joel Stradling, Research Director, European Security at IDC, said. “BT is a Leader for MSS in Europe thanks to its extensive routes to market, its significant footprint of regional security operations centres, and having qualified local security practitioners in place. Whilst BT operates globally, it is in Europe where it possesses its deepest threat landscape intelligence and customer intimacy. BT’s investment in Safe Security allows BT to layer on risk quantification and breach prediction capabilities along with visibility and control features that are available in its Eagle-i platform into a single integrated fully managed service for European customers."

Kevin Brown, Managing Director of Security at BT, said: “With the market becoming more competitive every year, we’re delighted to be recognised by the IDC MarketScape as a leader for MSS in Europe. We know the security industry and our customers rightly place a huge amount of value on IDC MarketScape assessments, which provide an objective and insightful view of organisations’ current and long-term capabilities. This positioning is a great validation of not only our strategy, investments and portfolio, but more importantly of our fantastic team across the globe who underpin everything we do.”

The IDC MarketScape report is based on a comprehensive quantitative and qualitative assessment of the region’s leading security organisations, which evaluates both direct company submissions and their customers’ feedback. The report judges both their current capabilities and expected future success in the marketplace.

For more information on the IDC MarketScape: European Managed Security Services 2022 Vendor Assessment [Ref: EUR146178820, January 2022] report, visit the BT website.

Under the terms of the agreement, BT hybrid cloud services will be based on Rackspace Technology’s cutting-edge solutions, which the company will deploy in BT data centres along with its Rackspace Fabric management layer.

Customers will benefit from the integration of Rackspace Technology’s cloud management expertise and automation, analytics, and AI tools with BT’s world-leading network and security capabilities.

This will enhance customer experience and enable BT to further evolve its managed cloud services.

Bas Burger, CEO of BT’s Global unit, said: “This innovative partnership with Rackspace Technology accelerates our plans to build a world-class hybrid cloud portfolio. It will deliver outstanding experiences for our customers and ensure they benefit from the best services, backed by our partner’s leadership in cloud.”

Kevin Jones, CEO of Rackspace Technology, said, “This exciting partnership with BT validates Rackspace Technology’s expertise in helping large, multinational enterprises in their cloud transformation journey and provides both companies with unique industry positioning. It highlights the enduring long-term value of a hybrid cloud model, as BT customers will now have access to the best of public cloud, private cloud, and traditional hosted environments alongside the speed, security, and resilience of BT’s worldwide networks.”

The companies have also committed to extend their partnership in the future to create new joint cloud offerings for their customers.

BT today announced it is working with ABB to elevate its internationally managed communications infrastructure to new levels of performance, choice and agility to support the company’s new operating model. It follows the signing of a new contract between the two companies.

The new contract builds on an existing agreement, signed in 2014, under which BT consolidated and optimised the leading global technology company’s international communications infrastructure. Working with ABB’s Information Systems team, BT will now transform the network infrastructure to create a sustainable, resilient and secure core platform featuring a highly automated and data-driven managed service.

Security is a top priority for ABB as it executes its cloud strategy, which includes consolidating data centres and moving more applications and data into the cloud. BT will enable ABB’s cloud-first ambitions with an end-to-end, compliant, multi-layered cyber security environment. It will deploy, manage and monitor over 1,100 end-point devices, continuously verifying every device, user and application accessing the network.

The communications infrastructure will reliably and securely connect people, devices and machines at over 600 facilities in 60 countries. Using the latest software-defined networking technology, it will offer ABB a choice of connectivity options for each site, including 5G access.

It will also provide ABB with a new software-driven platform delivered over Wifi 6 to enable mobility and digital manufacturing concepts, such as robotics, Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data technologies at production sites. Both companies have committed to a co-innovation fund as part of the contract.

By choosing BT, ABB is ensuring its network is delivered by a provider using 100 per cent renewable electricity globally with a commitment to achieving net zero emissions across all its operations by 2030.

“ABB’s world-class technology and digital capabilities are deeply embedded in our DNA. Maintaining and improving our innovation, technology and digital leadership is a strategic priority across the company,” said Alec Joannou, Group CIO, ABB. “BT is a great fit for our Information Systems function. As our trusted partner, it has helped us keep pace with a dynamic digital landscape and is now evolving our communications infrastructure to support our digital ambitions.”

“The cloud-first network and digital managed services we’re delivering will further enhance agility across ABB’s businesses,” said Bas Burger, CEO, Global, BT. “The unique trust between our two companies empowers us to push ahead as we connect ABB’s people, devices and machines in a sustainable and responsible way.” 

• Relentless growth and ever-changing nature of the threat landscape dictates a new, proactive approach to cyber security
• Customers to benefit from advances in AI and automation, combined with BT’s networking expertise, in transformational cyber defence platform
• Eagle-i builds on BT’s recent security investment and partner ecosystem to address issues such as a more than 50% increase in malware traffic over the last 6 months

Business and public sector bodies continue to face an exponential growth in the volume and complexity of cyber attacks, with new research from BT identifying a more than 50% increase in malware traffic over the last 6 months. Alongside a global shortage of skilled security professionals, organisations around the world are struggling to keep a lid on evolving cyber threats and maintain their defences.

In response, BT is launching its most sophisticated cyber defence platform yet — Eagle-i. It combines BT’s industry-leading network insight with advances in AI and automation to predict, detect and neutralise security threats before they get a chance to inflict damage. The platform has been designed to self-learn from the intelligence provided by each intervention, so that it constantly improves its threat knowledge and dynamically refines how it protects customers across a multi-cloud environment.

Eagle-i will utilise an AI layer to provide real-time detection of issues and intelligent automated responses, enabling users to significantly speed up their reaction to security issues and outpace their cyber threats. It is also uniquely able to integrate with technologies from across the security ecosystem so that organisations can both optimise their capabilities and spot any holes in their defences without having to replace existing investments. The platform will underpin how BT protects its global operations and provide phased enhancements and increased functionalities for all BT’s managed security services.

Kevin Brown, managing director, BT Security, said: “Security is now at the top of the boardroom and government agenda – yet many organisations are seeing their cyber risks increase to unmanageable levels. This situation demands a new, proactive approach. Eagle-i leverages the latest advances in AI and automation to continually monitor, learn and evolve so customers can stay a step ahead of cyber criminals.”

For more information on Eagle-i, click here.

BT today announced it is upgrading the global network of leading commercial explosives and blasting systems provider Orica with the latest cloud-optimised technology and cyber security solutions. The upgrade is part of Orica’s digital transformation and will support the migration of applications and services to the cloud.

Orica, which operates in more than 100 countries, utilises innovative, market-leading digital solutions built on cutting-edge technology and automation to create safer, more productive blast outcomes for customers.

The new managed network service, based on Cisco SD-WAN technology, will provide secure and flexible connectivity for the company’s more than 13,000 employees, many of whom work remotely on customer sites around the world.

For Orica’s IT team, BT will provide a single dashboard with comprehensive visibility of network traffic flows, infrastructure monitoring, applications performance management tools, end-user experience monitoring, security and event logging, and inventory discovery. Wrapped in ITIL service management, the dashboard will provide the capability to optimise an individual application’s performance to match business needs.

BT will also help Orica enhance cyber security across the new network and extend it into the manufacturing environment. BT’s security experts will deploy and manage a range of security solutions, including next generation firewalls from Cisco, and an enhanced remote access solution for Orica’s mobile workforce.

Angus Melbourne, Orica’s chief technology officer, said: “BT has been our trusted network partner for five years. We considered many technology and service options for our digital transformation and eventually chose BT as it offers a fully managed service built around our preferred technical solution covering Orica’s global locations. Our network transformation will not only result in improved service, but also reduce the cost of our global network.”

Joris van Oers, managing director, resources, manufacturing and logistics & Europe, Global, BT, said: “It’s great to see our two long-standing relationships continue to bear fruit. Firstly, we are delighted to continue supporting our innovative and dynamic customer Orica, and help their teams conduct their jobs safely, productively and sustainably. And secondly, we are drawing on the strength of our global partnership with Cisco to deliver the latest networking solutions required for our customer’s successful digital transformation.”

While large organisations often have entire teams dedicated to security, many smaller businesses with limited bandwidth and resources struggle to understand the steps they need to take to protect their organisation. In fact, in a recent survey 65% of small businesses said they had sought external information or guidance on security in the last 12 months[1], with many organizations remaining unclear on the appropriate methods to safeguard their business.

In response, BT have partnered with the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) to provide businesses with top tips for staying secure online. The NCSC is the nation’s technical authority on cyber security and provides products and guidance for SMEs, larger organisations, government agencies and the public.

Tip 1 – Backing up Your Data

All businesses, regardless of size, should take regular backups of their important data, and make sure that these backups are recent and can be restored. By doing this, you are ensuring your business can still function following the impact of flood, fire, physical damage, or theft. Furthermore, if you have backups of your data that you can quickly respond and recover in the event of a cyber breach

Your first step is to identify your essential data. This is the information that your business could not function without. Normally, this will comprise of documents, photos, emails, contacts, and calendars, most of which are kept in just a few common folders on your computer, phone, tablet, or network.

Once you have identified your most important data, keep your backups separate from your main computers. Whether it's on a USB stick, on a separate drive or a separate computer, access to data backups should be restricted so that they are not accessible by unauthorised staff members and are not permanently connected to the device holding the original copy. You can also back up your data with cloud storage, which means your data is physically separated from your computers and can be accessed from any device, simply by logging into your cloud environment.

Tip 2 – Protecting Your Organisation from Malware

Malicious software (also known as 'malware') is software or web content that can harm your organisation. This can include viruses, spyware, or ransomware which prevents users from accessing their computers (or the data stored on them) until a ransom is paid.

For all your IT equipment, make sure that the software and firmware is always kept up to date with the latest versions from software developers, hardware suppliers and vendors. Applying these updates is one of the most important things you can do to improve security - the IT version of eating your fruit and veg.

Ensure that your organisation is also running antivirus software across all your laptops and computers. Antivirus software is often included free within popular operating systems and can typically be enabled with one click. This is the same for firewalls which create a 'buffer zone' between your own network and external networks (such as the Internet). BT works with the NCSC on its ‘Active Cyber Defence’ programme, which aims to prevent the majority of malicious emails from reaching individuals and businesses in the UK – but most popular operating systems also now include a firewall, which you can switch on to protect yourself even further.

Tip 3 – Avoiding Phishing Attacks

A phishing attack is when scammers send fake emails to potential victims, asking them for sensitive information (such as bank details), or containing links to malicious websites. Scammers might try to trick you into sending money, giving away business details to sell on, or have their own motives for accessing your organisation's network.

Many phishing emails will often have similar warning signs which can include:

• Poor spelling, grammar, and punctuation

• Generic greeting, such as ‘Dear Customer’ rather than using your name

• A sense of urgency

• Email from high-ranking persons within your organisation, asking you to do something outside normal processes

• An offer of money or exclusive benefit

However, expecting your staff to identify and report all phishing emails is an unrealistic request, as fraudulent emails are becoming harder to spot. Never punish users who are struggling to recognise suspicious emails – users who fear reprisals will not report mistakes promptly, if at all. Instead, build a culture where users can confidently report phishing attempts (including ones that are clicked on) by having an effective process in place for reporting. You can then take steps to scan for malware and change passwords in a timely manner if you suspect a successful breach has occurred.

For further information on implementing these top tips, check out the NCSC’s Small Business Guide: Cyber Security

BT’s Top Tips on Tech page also has a dedicated section of security for businesses alongside wider guidance for staying safe online. In addition, our Skills for Tomorrow site has a range of guidance on improving Cyber Security in your organisation.

[1] Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2020: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cyber-security-breaches-survey-2020

The last few weeks have changed the way we use technology in ways we probably never imagined. Many of us are spending more time online, whether that’s home schooling, home working, shopping, gaming, or video calling with friends and family.

BT has produced a range of ‘Top Tips on Tech’, which give guidance on online issues ranging from children’s safety through to working from home and taking your business online. Throughout all these activities, it’s vital that you are doing them securely and protecting yourself from cybercrime. To help you, BT is supporting the government’s Cyber Aware campaign which gives six important tips to stay secure online.

Alongside these top tips, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has also produced helpful guidance on the secure use of video conferencing, online gaming and shopping to help keep us protected during this period of social distancing. Both BT and the NCSC believe making this guidance both easily available and understandable is crucial to keeping the UK safe online, and will explain below how following these steps can help your security.

Your email account contains lots of important information about you and is the gateway to all your other online accounts. If you think about it, if someone gets into your email, they could potentially reset the password on all your online accounts. That’s why it’s so important to keep it secure by protecting it with a strong password that is different to all your others. But what makes a strong password? Essentially the longer and more unusual your password is, the stronger it becomes and the harder it is for a criminal to hack or guess. The best way to make your password hard to hack is by using a sequence of three random – but memorable – words. For example, “BeachTarantulaOranges” (don’t copy this one though…).

You’ve probably got more online accounts than you can keep track of, from banking to shopping to social media to TV streaming services. You should avoid using the same password for different websites and do this by finding a way to remember passwords that works for you. Saving your passwords in your browser or by using a third party password manager is a great way to do this.

For an added layer of security on your important accounts, turn on two-factor authentication (2FA). This is a free security feature that’s available on many popular services and helps to prevent criminals accessing your accounts, normally by sending you a text or code when you log in, to check you are who you say you are. So if another person tries to access your account, they’re prevented from doing so.

Making sure your devices – your laptop, phone, tablet, smart speaker – have the most up to date software and apps is one of the best things you can do to immediately improve your security. Cyber criminals exploit weaknesses in software and apps to access your sensitive personal data, but providers are continually working to keep you secure by releasing regular updates. We’d encourage you to regularly check for updates on your devices and apps or set them to automatically update so you don’t have to think about it anymore.

If you’ve ever left your phone in your pocket and not realised until you heard it bouncing round the washing machine, your first two thoughts were probably ‘that’s going to be expensive’ and ‘I hope I haven’t lost all my photos’. We can’t help with the first thought, but the second one is easy to prepare for – just turn on automatic backup on your device. Not only will it help keep those treasured memories safe so you can access them again when you get a new device; it will also mean that if your phone, tablet or laptop is hacked you can recover quickly from your backup.

Finally, you may have noticed that cyber criminals using our fear of coronavirus (COVID-19) when sending scam emails that try and trick people into clicking on a bad link. The link could take you to a dodgy website or infect your device with malicious software. You may have received an email that claims to have a ‘cure’ for the virus or encourages you to donate. If you receive an email that you’re not quite sure about, you can send it to the NCSC’s Suspicious Email Reporting Service by forwarding it to report@phishing.gov.uk. If anything is found to be malicious, the NCSC will take it down and you will have helped protect others from falling victim to scams.

For more information visit www.ncsc.gov.uk/cyberaware