Cloudflare Offers Zero Trust Security to Vulnerable Critical Infrastructure

Cloudflare, a San Francisco-based cybersecurity company, has rolled out a new initiative to provide Zero Trust security at no cost to small and medium critical infrastructure organizations around the world. This new program, named Project Safekeeping, aims to protect under-resourced organizations that provide a critical community benefit but are at high risk for cyberattacks, with initial efforts focused on Australia, Germany, Japan, Portugal, and the United Kingdom.

“We know cyberattacks are on the rise and that critical infrastructure is a common target. But we know that when governments buckle down on security, that often means the largest institutions are protected, at the expense of small communities,” said Matthew Prince, co-founder, and CEO, Cloudflare. “Given the success we’ve had with our critical infrastructure program in the United States, we’re excited to bring it to more countries around the world.”

Government resources are typically allocated to the largest and most visible critical infrastructure – immense financial institutions, hospital networks, oil pipelines, and airports. However, small organizations that are the foundation of communities are also at risk, and often reliant on external support, grants, and volunteers: the neighborhood health clinic, water treatment facility, and local energy provider that fulfill fundamental needs. Cloudflare’s Project Safekeeping will build on the Critical Infrastructure Defense Program, created in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to protect US infrastructure. Cloudflare will now expand support to the global community, initially focusing efforts on Australia, Germany, Japan, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. Eligible entities in these regions will gain access to enterprise-level Zero Trust cybersecurity services, as well as application security products like DDOS protection and Web Application Firewall (WAF) for free. To be eligible, Project Safekeeping participants must be nonprofit entities, local government entities, and small and medium-sized private organizations whose primary focus is providing services that are vital to their communities’ health, safety, and basic economic needs.

Channel Impact^®
The initiative underscores the growing IT security risks to critical services.