23.10.25

Organisations Urged to Keep Emergency Plans Offline Amid Rising Cyber-threats

As cyber-risks become more pervasive, the UK government has written to chief executives across the country, urging them to keep physical copies of their business continuity plans, or emergency plans, in case of a major cyber-incident. The warning follows a recent series of significant attacks on major brands, including Marks & Spencer, Harrods, The Co-op and Jaguar Land Rover, which caused widespread disruption and financial losses.

Understanding the Cyber-threat Landscape

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) reported that the number of “nationally significant” cyber-attacks is increasing. In the 12 months to August 2025, the NCSC dealt with 204 such incidents, representing a substantial increase from the 89 reported the previous year. While the overall number of cyber-incidents handled by the NCSC remained relatively stable during this period, the surge in the amid rising high-impact cases highlights growing concerns about the scale and severity of cyber-threats.

In response, the government has written to chief executives and chairs of leading businesses – including all FTSE 350 companies – highlighting the importance of taking “concrete actions” to manage cyber-risks. Signed by Technology Secretary Liz Kendall, Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Business Secretary Peter Kyle, Security Minister Dan Jarvis, and the heads of the NCSC and the National Crime Agency, the letter urges companies to think beyond traditional cyber-security controls and embrace “resilience engineering” – a concept that promotes building systems and processes that can anticipate, absorb and adapt in the face of an attack. This should include keeping business continuity plans, emergency contacts and system restoration guides offline in printed binders, as digital systems are often rendered inoperable during a cyber-attack.

The chief executive of the NCSC said, “Cyber-security is now a matter of business survival and national resilience,” and companies should “have a plan for how they would continue to operate without their IT (and rebuild that IT at pace) were an attack to get through.”

The government is also encouraging organisations to utilise the free tools and services offered by the NCSC, including the popular Cyber Essentials programme.

Emergency Plans – Next steps

Although robust cyber-security controls remain critical to help prevent cyber-attacks, organisations must scrutinise how they can adapt and recover quickly and efficiently if one should occur. In particular, organisations should establish manual workarounds and offline communication methods in case digital systems are disrupted and store these procedures in printed form for easy access during an incident. Additionally, organisations should review their cyber-insurance and business interruption cover to ensure financial protection in the face of evolving threats.

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Information provided by Zywave and contributed to by Lisa Langley, (Cert CII) Team Leader, Professional Risks, Cox Mahon Ltd.