Cybercrime recovery service launches to support Greater Manchester businesses

Over the past four months, reports of cyber-attacks and online scams have been above the regional average against businesses and individuals

A free service for Greater Manchester businesses affected by cybercrime has been launched by the Cyber Resilience Centre for Greater Manchester.

Over the past four months, reports of cyber-attacks and online scams have been above the regional average against businesses and individuals. Disruptions caused by Covid-19 left businesses vulnerable and cybercriminals were able to take advantage through targeted attacks. Locally, there have been reports of business social media account compromise, ransomware attacks and invoice hijacking.

The Cyber Resilience Centre for Greater Manchester (CRC) works in close partnership with Greater Manchester Police to help businesses grow and strengthen their resilience to online crime.

In response to this recent surge in online crime, they have launched their Cybercrime Recovery Service, a free service for any business within Greater Manchester affected by a cybercrime and will help put the right security measures in place to prevent further attacks.

Detective Superintendent, Neil Jones from Greater Manchester Police and Head of Innovation at the CRC said: “The strong partnership between police and the Cyber Resilience Centre means any business affected by online crime or fraud will get to know of this fantastic free service.

“They will get support from expert Cyber Security Consultants as well as Cyber Awareness training.”

It is estimated that cybercrime costs the Greater Manchester economy £860 million a year. Only around 1% of cyber-attacks are currently reported to the authorities in the UK, meaning many businesses do not get support after it happens.

The CRC is hoping their Cybercrime Recovery Service will encourage more local business to report any online related crime they may experience.