• Nine start-ups tackling online security issues and threats have completed the second GCHQ Cyber Accelerator
• Firms can now register interest for third cohort
• Programme to now be re-named the NCSC Cyber Accelerator

A group of tech start-ups have become the latest to graduate from a ground-breaking Government initiative to advance the next generation of cyber security systems.

The nine-month GCHQ Cyber Accelerator, delivered in partnership with Wayra UK, part of Telefónica Open Future, saw nine companies develop cutting-edge products and services to help enhance the UK’s cyber defences.

Part of the UK Government’s £1.9bn National Cyber Security Strategy and the Cheltenham Innovation Centre, the Accelerator is a collaboration between the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), GCHQ, National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), and Wayra UK and aims to drive innovation in the cyber security sector.

Firms selected to take part in the second round had access to world-class personnel and technical expertise at the NCSC and GCHQ, as well as the Telefónica global business network. They also received £25,000 in funding, high-quality mentoring and office space.

Innovations developed include a cloud service solution to connect Internet of Things devices with end-to-end authenticated, encrypted security and a service to solve the problem of age verification and parental consent for young adults and children in online transactions

Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Matt Hancock, said:

“With so much of our daily lives connected to the internet, it is vital the UK leads the way on cyber security to fulfil our ambition of making Britain the safest place to in the world to be online.”

"The NCSC Cyber Accelerator programme is a great example of government, industry and tech start-ups coming together to benefit from the advice of world-class experts and tackle cyber crime."

Chris Ensor, NCSC Deputy Director for Cyber Skills and Growth, said:

“On behalf of the NCSC, I would like to congratulate the second cohort on their completion of the Accelerator.

“It has been exciting to collaborate with such innovative start-ups, tackling such a broad range of problems.”

“I’m really pleased that Wayra UK will continue to be our partner. I look forward to working with them and meeting more pioneering entrepreneurs as we launch the next cohort.”

Gary Stewart, Director of Wayra UK, said:

“We are really pleased to be continuing our partnership with GCHQ. It's one of our most strategic and successful partnerships.

Indeed, our first two cohorts have raised more than £20 million in funding, have created 19 British jobs and have won 15 trials and contracts worth over £3 million. And this has been just in the last 18 months.”

Companies who took part were Cybershield, Secure Code Warrior, RazorSecure, Elliptic, Intruder, Trust Elevate, Warden, Ioetec and ExactTrak.

NCSC, DCMS and Wayra UK will soon be calling for cyber start-ups to join the third round of the programme – now renamed to the NCSC Cyber Accelerator – to help address some of cyber space’s key challenges.

Innovative entrepreneurs and start-ups can now register interest in participating in the nine-month programme, which will include ten innovative, agile companies in 2018/19.

Further information

The Cyber Accelerator supports the emerging UK cyber security industry, encouraging skills, jobs and growth as part of the NCSC ‘Growth and Innovation’ strategy and is part of the broader Cheltenham Innovation Centre.

Successful applicants will benefit from access to world-class personnel and technological expertise, allowing them to expand their capability, improve their technology and develop their products to outpace current and emerging threats.

For more information about the programme head here.

The companies who took part in the latest round of the programme included:

• Cybershield detects phishing and spear phishing, and alerts employees before they mistakenly act on deceptive emails
• Elliptic detects and investigates cybercrime involving crypto-currencies, enabling the company to identify illicit blockchain activity and provide intelligence to financial institutions and law enforcement agencies
• ExactTrak supplies embedded technology that protects data and devices, giving the user visibility and control even when the devices are turned off
• Intruder provides a proactive security monitoring platform for internet-facing systems and businesses, detecting system weaknesses before hackers do
• Ioetec provides a plug-and-play cloud service solution to connect Internet of Things devices with end-to-end authenticated, encrypted security
• RazorSecure provides advanced intrusion and anomaly detection for aviation, rail and automotive sectors
• Secure Code Warrior has built a hands-on, gamified Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) learning platform to help developers write secure code
• Trust Elevate solves the problem of age verification and parental consent for young adults and children in online transactions
• Warden helps businesses protect their users from hacks in real time by monitoring for suspicious activity