Events , Information Sharing , Infosecurity Europe Conference

UK Cyber Sector Booms, But Challenges Remain

The U.K. cyber sector has grown significantly. Annual cybersecurity revenue reached 11.9 billion pounds - $15.1 billion - in 2024. But cyberattacks continue to increase, driven by the widespread proliferation of technology across the economy, said Saj Huq, chief commercial officer at Plexal. "It's becoming both easier and harder to cyber-secure industry and drive resilience," he said.

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The U.K. National Cyber Security Strategy focuses on five components - building the cybersecurity ecosystem, developing skills, enhancing operational resilience across the U.K. economy, safeguarding technologies, and shaping international cybersecurity standards and fostering global partnerships.

"Driving partnerships between public and private interests" will likely address "half" of this challenge, Huq said. Collaboration between business and academia will be critical for "researching the areas that we need and developing new [intellectual property], which then forms the products or underpins the services that we need to drive resilience across the economy."

In this video interview with Information Security Media Group at Infosecurity Europe 2024, Huq also discussed:

• The challenges startups face in achieving product-market fit and scaling their solutions;
• The importance of international partnerships and global market expansion for companies;
• How Plexal drives innovation programs to help grow the U.K.'s cyber sector.

Huq specializes in building collaborative ecosystems between startups, government, industry and academia. He is a member of HMG's National Cyber Advisory Board. Huq's leadership experience of nearly 20 years spans service in the Royal Air Force and companies such as PwC and Deloitte.