29 August 2018

What’s claimed to be the world’s first dedicated cyber security academy for business communities has been launched. 

The London-based Global Cyber Academy (GCA) offers diploma qualifications and UK-accredited education programmes that include Global Security Management, Crisis Management and Identifying and Mitigating the Effects of Terrorism. Courses on blockchain and AI will be available from January 2019.

Monthly and bi-monthly live training events for executives have been launched in four GCA hubs: London, Prague, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

The programmes are said to be totally focused on the business environment, and include case studies, videos and assessments.

They are delivered online, in class or mixed with flying faculty. Training has already taken place in Malaysia, Oman and Bahrain which, says the GCA, are all key UK export markets. 

GCA founder and CEO Richard Bingley believes cyber security training should be about the “mass digital upskilling” of employees, so that staff have a structured approach and a baseline competency.

He adds: “Existing IT security training programmes are far too technical, too belaboured with rote-learning, and lack the emphasis on human behaviour and realistic physical security management approaches; whilst existing physical security training programmes are far too rushed and non-technical. We feel that our approach closes the blind-spots on both sides of the subject vehicle – ‘cyber’ and ‘security’.”