Burness Paull joins Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland cybercrime response network

Burness Paull has partnered with The Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland, the leading organisation for building resilience against cybercrime and fraud, to join their Incident Response Cadre, aimed at tackling the growing cyber security threats against Scotland’s businesses.

Picture: Legal, IT and Security members of the Incident Response Cadre

The Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland’s Incident Response Cadre is formed of a trusted network of legal, IT and specialist cyber security service providers, including Closed Door Security, Cloud Cover IT, Consider IT, Silver Cloud and Anderson Strathern, who join existing partners Tech Force Cyber and Sapphire. Companies who have recently experienced a cyber-attack are referred to the cadre to receive immediate expert advice and assistance. Experts from Burness Paull’s cyber security team will help companies affected by cybercrime negotiate the legal and regulatory reverberations.

The Incident Response helpline, run by the Centre in conjunction with the Scottish Government and Police Scotland and aimed at helping SMEs and the third sector to access resources after a cyber-attack, last week reached a record 300 calls since its inception in 2020, reflecting the regularity with which businesses are finding themselves victims of an attack. To manage the effects of such an event, the Centre has urged organisations to avoid complacency by ensuring that they have a reliable Incident Response Plan in place and testing it regularly, as well as knowing where to access useful resources.

Hazel Moffat, Partner at Burness Paull, said: “Data breaches and cyber-attacks are increasing in frequency and scale and should be high on the risk register of all Scottish organisations. As part of the Cyber Fraud Centre Incident Response Cadre, Burness Paull stands ready to provide swift, practical and tailored legal advice, using our extensive experience to support organisations in responding to and mitigating the effects of, a cyber security incident.

Our cyber security team of experts brings together colleagues from across dispute resolution, regulatory, data privacy, and employment to provide clients with a full “Before, During and After” set of cyber security services, not only assisting when an attack takes place but advising  on preventative strategies to mitigate the risk of one occurring".

Jude McCorry, CEO of Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland, said: ‘As levels of cybercrime and fraud in Scotland reach new heights, it has never been more important for organisations to prepare for the possibility of being targeted. We provide a variety of resources to assist after a cyber-attack, including the provision of the Incident Response helpline. However, organisations must also ensure that they are equipped to respond immediately to cybercrime - having a well-tested plan in place is the most effective way to do this. We would encourage organisations to have an incident response partner in place as part of their incident response plan. All of our partners are happy to have that conversation and assist companies now, rather than waiting for an attack to happen.”

In collaboration with CyberScotland, the Cyber and Fraud Centre has developed a Cyber Incident Response Pack that offers SMEs and Charities actionable guidance on preparing for and managing a cyber-attack. Should an organisation fall prey to cybercriminals, they can reach out to the Cyber and Fraud Centre's free Incident Response helpline at 0800 1670 623 for immediate assistance.

Find out more at https://cyberfraudcentre.com