Lindy Cameron appointed as new UK cyber security head

After Ciaran Martin announced he would be stepping down as the head of the UK’s national cyber security unit – the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) – back in December 2019, Lindy Cameron has now been officially announced as his successor. 

Mr Martin was the founding head of the unit and its first Chief Executive, with the NCSC designed to protect Britain against threats from hostile states and criminal hackers, as part of the UK’s communication intelligence service, GCHQ. In particular, the unit engages with companies which run critical UK energy, finance and telecoms infrastructure. He recommended the establishment of the department following the general election in 2015.

Ms Cameron joins the NCSC after 20 years’ of experience in national security policy and crisis management, including experience in Baghdad and Kabul with the DFID, and most recently worked as number two at the Northern Ireland Office. She has said: “Over the past four years, the NCSC has transformed the UK’s approach to cyber security and set a benchmark for other countries to follow. I am delighted to join the NCSC and relish the opportunity to take this world-leading organisation to the next level.”

She will formally take over the role in October, following a handover period with Mr Martin. The role involves overseeing the response to hundreds of cyber security incidents each year and improving the overall resilience of the UK’s critical national infrastructure.

Ms Cameron will also continue to oversee the NCSC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, where the organisation has been working alongside the CPNI (Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure) to provide advice and put together a collection of guidance documents for businesses. As has been highlighted on IFSEC Global and throughout the mainstream media, there has been an increased threat of cyber scams during the coronavirus pandemic.

Upon leaving, Mr Martin said: “It has been the privelage of a lifetime to set up the NCSC and lead its brilliant people. Challenges around securing technology are only going to get ever more complex, so it’s right that after six and a half years that someone else takes this world-class organisation to the next level.”

He will be moving on to become a Professor of Practice in Public Management at the University of Oxford.

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