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Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) form the bedrock of the UK’s economy. Representing over 99% of businesses and contributing more than £2.6 trillion in annual turnover, they drive growth and innovation across every region and industry. Yet despite their economic weight, SMEs remain dangerously underprepared and exposed in one fundamental area - cybersecurity.
A recent report from Vodaphone found that over a third of UK SMEs (around 35%) suffered a cyber incident in the past year alone, while nearly one in three (32%) continue to operate without any cybersecurity protections in place (Vodaphone Report, 2025).
The result? An estimated £3 billion in annual losses across the SME sector, ranging from data breaches, ransomware, and cyber fraud. For many small firms, a single breach isn’t just disruptive, it’s potentially fatal.
A 2025 report by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) even highlighted that 60% of small businesses that suffer a breach/successful attack go out of business within six months. Worse still, the report revealed other alarming statistics, such as only 46% of surveyed SMEs having implemented an incident response plan, or only 51% regularly monitoring for threats (ABI, 2025). This means that a vast majority of SMEs are treating cybersecurity as an afterthought, even as the risks facing them grow more urgent.
A Nationally Backed Solution: The Secure Innovation Grant
Recognising this growing threat to one of the most core elements of the economy, the UK Government has stepped in with a targeted new scheme, the Secure Innovation Security Review (SISR). Backed by £1.3 million in funding, the programme offers 500 eligible SMEs up to £2,500 worth of security expertise for a contribution of just £500. The grant is aimed specifically at businesses operating in sensitive or high-growth sectors such as AI, defence, life sciences, clean energy, and semi-conductors, industries which are increasingly vulnerable to espionage, intellectual property theft, and supply chain attacks.
Through the scheme, participating SMEs receive a comprehensive security review delivered by vetted experts, spanning digital infrastructure, IP protection, risk and incident management, supply chains and physical security controls. Rather than a simple, generic checklist, SMEs receive a tailored report that outlines vulnerabilities and offers practical, actionable recommendations.
Crucially, the support doesn’t end there. A follow-up is conducted six months later to assess progress and provide continued assistance, helping SMEs not only understand their risks but respond to them effectively. These companies will also receive a £300 voucher to help fund Cyber Essentials certification, a UK Government backed scheme designed to help businesses implement basic cybersecurity measures to defend against the most common cyber threats.
This scheme hasn’t just appeared out of the blue. It builds upon an incredibly successful 2023 pilot, where 98% of businesses reported that, due to the scheme, they now had sufficient knowledge to identify security threats facing their business, with the same 98% committing to further action to strengthen their security.
Why These Reviews Matter
One of the most persistent myths in cybersecurity is that attackers only go after big targets. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. Cybercriminals are opportunistic. SMEs, especially those working on innovative products, handling sensitive data, or integrated into critical supply chains, are increasingly in the crosshairs.
Unfortunately, many of these organisations lack the necessary resources to assess or improve their own security. Without in-house teams, expertise, or dedicated security staff, SMEs will often rely on outdated approaches, insufficient training, or only respond reactively to threats. That’s where the SISR grant plays a significant role. It lowers the barrier to access cybersecurity expertise, helping businesses understand what’s at stake, and where to focus improvements.
Even more importantly, the six-month follow-up introduces the idea of accountability and continuous improvement. It’s not just a one-off review, but rather a wake-up call to ensuring long-term resilience by keeping protective measures in place at all times.
How OneClickComply Helps SMEs Turn Advice into Action
Still, one major hurdle remains for many SMEs; turning recommendations into true, tangible change. Advice is only useful if it’s implemented, and many small firms lack the time or capacity to follow through on even basic security controls. That’s where OneClickComply plays a critical role.
OneClickComply is a compliance automation platform designed to help businesses of all sizes easily meet their cybersecurity and compliance goals. Where the SISR scheme helps businesses identify their weaknesses, OneClickComply helps fix them in a single click.
The platform allows SMEs to connect their environments, such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, AWS, and Azure, compare their settings and controls against the requirements of security standards and frameworks like Cyber Essentials, SOC 2, and ISO 27001, and automatically remediate any detected issue in a single click. The platform also includes automated policy generation, penetration testing capabilities, continuous monitoring, and device vulnerability management, all features designed to not only help businesses meet their compliance and security goals, but ensure they stay there.
OneClickComply mirrors the aims of the grant; making cybersecurity easier to understand, more affordable to implement, and improving the defences of UK SMEs.
Strengthening the UK From the Ground Up
The Secure Innovation Security Review programme is more than just a support scheme. It’s a statement of intent. It acknowledges that cybersecurity is not a luxury or a checkbox for large businesses, but a fundamental requirement for every business that plays a part in the UK’s digital and economic future.
For SMEs, this is a rare and powerful opportunity. With expert guidance from approved professionals, financial backing from the Government, and automation tools like OneClickComply to turn recommendations into reality, the path to proper security is clearer, and more achievable, than ever.
