Kyndryl Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Kyndryl, and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) have announced the successful conclusion of the Cyber Resilience Program pilot. This marks a major milestone in its partnership to build cybersecurity skills in Australia’s not-for-profit (NFP) sector.
Following the success of the pilot that provided fully funded training to 397 learners, the program is now open to the Australian public. Kyndryl Foundation will continue to partner with UTS to provide fully funded training for an upper limit goal of 1,400 individuals working in the NFP sector over the next two years.
The program was developed in consultation with NFP organisations and industry experts, with the objective of advancing cybersecurity skills in the sector. NFPs are highly vulnerable to cyber threats, as they hold large amounts of sensitive data and often lack the resources for robust cyber training. The program comprises four non-technical short courses spanning cybersecurity foundations, data privacy, secure data handling, and cybersecurity for Company Directors, and one technical micro-credential on threat detection and response.
The pilot program was launched in 2024 and far exceeded expectations with a 340% increase on initial expectations of 90 participants in the first year. Participants included individuals working in technical and non-technical roles from a wide range of NFPs, including those serving Indigenous, refugee, and low socio-economic communities, and UTS students.
“Through the generous support of the Kyndryl Foundation, we are addressing the growing demand for online and face-to-face cyber resilience training and cyber career pathway programs. UTS is proud to be providing a service that helps not-for-profit organisations and the communities they serve through training that addresses head-on the growth in cybercrime that is targeting small enterprises, which are vulnerable to cyber-attacks,” said Peta Wyeth, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and IT, University of Technology Sydney.
“We are seeing a clear, strong demand for accessible cybersecurity education within the not-for-profit sector over the last year,” said Erandhi Mendis, Social Impact Leader at Kyndryl A/NZ. “Cyber resilience shouldn’t be a privilege. We’re excited to continue our partnership with UTS to support broader systemic improvements in Australia’s digital safety landscape, and a more inclusive cybersecurity workforce.”
Launched in 2023, the Kyndryl Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Kyndryl (NYSE: KD) and supports the communities where Kyndryl does business by addressing critical societal issues through local grant funding, volunteerism and investments.
Organisations and individuals who are interested in the UTS Cyber Resilience Program should express their interest here: https://plus.uts.edu.au/enquire-now/
