The UK government and GCHQ have launched a major new scheme designed to support cybersecurity research in the country, it has been announced.

Dubbed CyberInvest, the £6.5 million initiative will bring together experts at GCHQ, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and leading academics to work towards boosting the nation’s cyberdefences.

The scheme was unveiled at IA15, the UK government’s flagship security event, which is specifically designed for information security decision makers in the country.

Commenting on CyberInvest, Ed Vaizey, minister for culture and the digital economy, described it as an “exciting initiative”.

"Over the last four years we have invested over £20 million in UK cybersecurity research, and the new CyberInvest scheme will play an important role in our ongoing work to help protect UK citizens and businesses online."

He said: “Over the last four years we have invested over £20 million in UK cybersecurity research, and the new CyberInvest scheme will play an important role in our ongoing work to help protect UK citizens and businesses online."

The government hopes that this scheme will become an intrinsic part of its cybersecurity strategy.

Aware that cybercrime is one of the most pressing issues in the world today, it is recognized by the UK – and indeed other countries – that more investment is needed to “detect and defend” against cyberthreats.

In particular, protecting the UK’s critical national infrastructure – “those facilities, systems, sites and networks necessary for the functioning of the country” – is seen as a high priority.

Highlighting the importance of cybersecurity research, the government pointed to the work done to develop the comprehensive Password Guidance document.

The paper is comprised of seven tips that offer advice on how come up with a successful and secure password policy in the workplace.

“Every single user in the UK public sector has at least one (and most likely considerably more) work-related password,” the document states.

“By simplifying your organization's approach, you can reduce the workload on users, lessen the support burden on IT departments, and combat the false sense of security that unnecessarily complex passwords can encourage.”