Upgrading Argyll school's cybersecurity has £1.9m price tag

“Schools have invested significant funds in additional learning devices to supplement the council’s PC rolling replacement programme.

“Improved network infrastructure will sustain this investment and provide the capacity to support the outstanding commitment from the Scottish Government to ensure access to a device for every child.

“Cyber attacks on education establishments are rising exponentially, with secondary schools and higher education establishments at most risk due to their high reliance on IT and digital learning platforms.

“These establishments may be targeted by criminals because of the sensitive nature of data that may be held or accessed by user devices, which are also vulnerable to email phishing and malware attacks without robust device management policies.”

The report then confirms the recommended option will cost £1,908,716 over five years, with Mr Hendry detailing where funding could be sourced.

He added: “ICT has identified a one-off contribution of £81,500 from the ICT capital budget allocated to replace red risk education network equipment between 2024/25 and 2025/26 as higher specification equipment would be necessary.

“Education service has identified a contribution of £460,000 from earmarked reserves pertaining to Covid related education fund [£310,000], underspend from Skype for Business for education [£10,000], and education transformation fund [£140,000].

“The revenue model would require an ongoing cost and demand pressure for 2 x senior engineers of £115,000; and to education services £180,000 in 2025/26 and 2026/27, rising to £233,000 from 2027/28 onwards for additional specialist software licensing to deliver the required level of secure flexibility.”