Civil Society Groups Avert Digital Harm: Frontline Stories
Two success stories show how CyberSTAR empowers small, at-risk civil society organizations (CSOs) to defend themselves from digital attack.
For these organizations, digital technology can be both a blessing and a curse: tools that transform their efficiency and reach also expose them to new digital threats. For those working amid conflict or instability, an attack can have devastating consequences—from service outages to data leaks exposing staff and beneficiaries to harassment, extortion or worse. And smaller CSOs, who generally lack IT capacity, can be the most critically vulnerable.
That’s why we created CyberSTAR: to help small, at-risk CSOs build their digital resilience. It’s all about raising teams’ capacity to keep themselves safe, in ways that recognize their limits and strengths. How well is CyberSTAR working? Our CSO “graduates” are best placed to show you that. Have a look at these stories from the field.
CyberSTAR graduates share their stories
“It didn’t look suspicious.”
How “Anna” thwarted a phishing attack that almost devastated a Moldovan media-freedom organization. →Read the story.
“Too many PIN entry attempts!”
How smart preparation kept a Kazakhstani NGO’s sensitive documents away from prying eyes on the road. →Read the story.
The CyberSTAR difference
CyberSTAR is the Foundation’s digital-safety framework, purpose-built for small, at-risk civil society organizations. Through on-site implementations, we’ve already helped more than 100 small, at-risk civil society organizations (CSOs) transform their digital safety postures (mostly in the Eurasian region). And for every full-scale graduate, many more CSOs around the world are strengthening themselves using CyberSTAR methods and materials.
Larger organizations have several ways now to secure a digital safety audit. But this isn’t ideal for smaller CSOs lacking IT resources to interpret and act on an exhaustive report. So CyberSTAR works differently. We start with a detailed assessment, then lead staff through remediating their most critical vulnerabilities. But the heart of the process is behavioural: helping teams recognize digital risks, adopt safer practices, and solidify progress as smart policies.
Ultimately, we are helping organizations build human infrastructure. With each full implementation, our team identifies and mentors at least one internal Digital Safety Champion (DSC). They usually don’t start as “techies.” These are trusted team members capable of facilitating the CyberSTAR process, and then carrying progress forward into the future. And they’ve been indispensable to the success of the organizations we have supported.
You can visit cyber-star.org to access digital-safety learning resources in English and seven other languages. You’ll also find teaching guides there, and even outlines of the full CyberSTAR methodology.
