SBA offers cybersecurity grants for training small businesses

The U.S. Small Business Administration today announced $3 million in new funding under the Cybersecurity for Small Business Pilot Program.

Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman said t hree grants will be awarded to state agencies to provide training, counseling, and other tailored cybersecurity services for startups and emerging entrepreneurs.

“With small businesses accounting for 99.9% of all American businesses and employing nearly half of the private workforce, any cyber threat to our small businesses is a threat to our country’s overall economy,” Guzman said in a statement.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to strengthening our nation’s cybersecurity and equipping small businesses with the tools they need to strengthen their cyber health and prevent costly attacks that disrupt their businesses,” she said. “Through this new funding, the SBA will fund ecosystem partners to provide more cyber training and counseling to strengthen small businesses’ ability to compete in this increasingly digital economy.”

Applications will be accepted from July 2-Aug. 2, and applicants can apply for awards ranging from $1 million to $1,045,000 for a performance period of 24 months ending September 2026.

Eligible applicants include state and territorial government agencies that seek to provide training, counseling, and other tailored cybersecurity services for startups and emerging entrepreneurs, SBA said.

The competitive funding opportunity for state governments will support efforts to educate emerging small businesses when they are most vulnerable to cyber threats, and to help them develop robust cybersecurity measures, Guzman said.

SBA’s Cybersecurity for Small Business Pilot Program has awarded nearly $9 million in funding since 2022. Proposals responding to this Funding Opportunity Number SB-OEDCS-24-001 must be posted to Grants.gov under “Cybersecurity for Small Business Pilot” by 11:59 p.m. (EDT), Aug. 2.

In addition to the grant program, the SBA along with Resource Partners offers other cybersecurity resources to small businesses, including in-person and online training. To find these SBA local resources, visit www.sba.gov/local-assistance. To learn more about SBA’s programs and services related to cybersecurity, visit www.sba.gov/cybersecurity and https://www.nist.gov/itl/smallbusinesscyber.

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