The Protective Domain Name System for Schools is backed by Cloudflare and Accenture.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is offering a free cyber defence service to help block online threats for schools.
Following an initial rollout of the PDNS (Protective Domain Name System) for Schools, the service has now been extended to more educational settings across the UK, with multi-academy trusts, academies, independent schools and school internet service providers now encouraged to sign up.
Sarah Lyons, NCSC’s deputy director for economy and society said PDNS for Schools helps prevent malware, ransomware, phishing attacks, and other online threats from reaching school networks, and is part of a wider cybersecurity offer of guidance and tools. It is also part of a recently announced partnership with Cloudflare and Accenture.
Suzan Sakarya, senior manager, EMEIA security strategy at Jamf, said: “Students spend nearly twice as much time online as ever before; therefore, the PDNS service is critical in blocking unsafe content and mitigating malicious attacks. While keeping children safe online is a priority, it’s important that the service is rolled out without sacrificing the learning experience.
“When implementing the NCSC’s PDNS service, schools should carry out a risk assessment—identifying all their connected assets and the threats that affect their network. This then helps build a security framework that suits each individual school’s security needs but doesn’t impact the quality of online learning.”
Written by
Dan Raywood
Senior Editor
SC Media UK
Dan Raywood is a B2B journalist with more than 20 years of experience, including covering cybersecurity for the past 16 years. He has extensively covered topics from Advanced Persistent Threats and nation-state hackers to major data breaches and regulatory changes.
He has spoken at events including 44CON, Infosecurity Europe, RANT Conference, BSides Scotland, Steelcon and ESET Security Days.
Outside work, Dan enjoys supporting Tottenham Hotspur, managing mischievous cats, and sampling craft beers.
