Page:ISC-China.pdf/128

CHINA

328. Research Collaboration Advice Team was established within the (then) Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to "promote government advice on security-related topics, such as export controls, cyber security, and protection of intellectual property".^[1]
329. In December 2020, the DNSA noted the close relationship between the Government and Universities UK in the dissemination of advice to the sector.^[2] Universities UK published its guide 'Managing Risks in Internationalisation: Security Related Issues' in October 2020, which drew heavily on resources from the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure and NCSC. The guide was designed to be used in conjunction with Project DERWENT^[3]—which aims to deliver greater awareness and protective security advice around the threat from Hostile State Activity to UK research and innovation—and provides advice on the protection of reputation and values, people, campuses and partnerships.^[4]

     Project DERWENT/Trusted Research

     Project DERWENT aims to deliver greater awareness and protective security advice around the threat from Hostile State Activity (HSA) to UK research and innovation, particularly presented by joint research ventures and academic collaboration. The work aligns with the Cabinet Office-led 'Trading Safely' pillar.

      

     Objectives

     • To increase understanding and awareness of the threat from HSA to research and innovation posed by academic collaboration and joint research ventures.
     • To jointly (between the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure and the National Cyber Security Centre) develop a package of proportionate protective security measures to make the UK's cutting-edge research and innovation a harder target for HSA.
     • To identify and deploy levers which encourage good security behaviour within the sector.
     • To enable government departments and other organisations to disseminate advice and guidance products to the sector.

     The Government's approach will focus on the departments and private sector organisations that fund and set the strategic direction for research and innovation, in order to influence

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1. Dedicated government team to protect researchers' work from hostile activity', GOV.UK, 25 May 2021, [https://www.gov.uk/government/news/dedicated-government-team-to-protect-researchers-work-from-hostile-activity www.gov.uk/government/news/dedicated-government-team-to-protect-researchers-work-from-hostile-activity]
2. Oral evidence, NSS—*** December 2020.
3. In some instances in this Report, we have substituted an ISC-specific code word where it has been necessary to refer to the name of an operation or project, in order to protect classified information. No significance is intended by, nor should be inferred from, the matching of code words to real operation names. The ISC code words have no operational significance.
4. 'Managing Risks in Internationalisation: Security Related Issues', Universities UK, 15 October 2020, [https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Documents/2020/managing-risks-in-internationalisation.pdf www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Documents/2020/managing-risks-in-internationalisation.pdf

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