Charities exist to serve their communities. But behind every food bank delivery, mentoring programme, and crisis helpline sits a growing web of digital systems: donor databases, online payment platforms, CRM tools, volunteer records, and cloud-based file storage. Each holds sensitive personal data – and in 2026, that data is more at risk than ever.
According to the UK Government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025, 30% of UK charities experienced a cyber breach or attack in the previous 12 months. That equates to roughly 61,000 organisations. Of those affected, 86% were hit by phishing attacks, and charities collectively experienced an estimated 453,000 cybercrimes over the same period.
For any charity leader responsible for safeguarding supporter information, these figures demand attention. The question is no longer whether your charity could be targeted. It’s whether you’re prepared when it happens.
Why Are Charities Being Targeted?
Cybercriminals tend to look for organisations that hold valuable data but lack the resources to defend it properly. Charities fit that profile. They manage donor payment details, Gift Aid records, beneficiary case notes, and volunteer personal information, often on tight budgets with limited in-house technical expertise.
The Cyber Security Breaches Survey found that only 26% of charities had conducted a cyber security risk assessment in the past year, and fewer than one in five had a formal incident response plan. This gap between the volume of data held and the level of protection in place makes the sector particularly vulnerable.
The threat is also evolving. AI-powered phishing emails are becoming harder to spot, with attackers using generative tools to craft convincing messages that impersonate trusted colleagues, suppliers, or even grant-awarding bodies. Business email compromise and impersonation attacks accounted for 35% of charity cyber incidents in the most recent survey period.
The Real Cost of a Data Breach
When a charity suffers a breach, the financial hit can be significant. Data from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau shows that UK charities reported an average loss of £7,400 per cybercrime incident in 2025. While that figure may sound manageable for a large national organisation, it can be devastating for a small Devon charity running on restricted funding.
But the financial cost is only part of the picture. Under the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018, charities have a legal duty to protect the personal data they collect. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) can impose fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of annual turnover for serious breaches. The ICO has already taken action against charities directly. In 2017, eleven major charities, including Oxfam, Cancer Research UK, and the NSPCC, were collectively fined £138,000 for mishandling donor data. More recently, the charity Birthlink received an £18,000 penalty in 2025 for the unnecessary destruction of irreplaceable adoption records.
Beyond fines, there is the reputational damage. Donors give because they trust a charity to use their money and protect their information responsibly. A single breach can shake that confidence. If supporters begin to question whether their payment details or personal circumstances are safe, donations can fall and volunteer engagement can decline. Rebuilding that trust takes far longer than the breach itself.
GDPR: What Charity Leaders Need to Know
Data protection compliance is not optional for charities. Under the UK GDPR, your organisation must collect only the data it genuinely needs, store it securely, and have clear processes for reporting breaches. If a reportable breach occurs, you are required to notify the ICO within 72 hours.
In practice, this means every charity needs documented data handling policies, staff training on recognising phishing attempts, and technical safeguards such as encryption, multi-factor authentication, and access controls. These are not aspirational targets; these are legal requirements.
Despite this, the government’s survey found that only 35% of charities had formal cyber security policies in place. That means the majority are operating without the documented procedures that regulators expect to see. For charity leaders and trustees, this represents both a compliance risk and a governance concern.
How Managed IT Support Protects Your Charity
Most charities do not have the budget for a full-time IT security team. That is precisely where IT support for charities through a managed service provider becomes essential. A good IT support partner does not simply fix things when they break. They work proactively to prevent problems before they occur.
Here is what that looks like in practice. Managed IT support for non-profits typically provides continuous monitoring of your systems for unusual activity, regular patching and software updates to close known vulnerabilities, secure cloud-based backup so your data can be recovered after an incident, access controls that ensure only authorised staff can reach sensitive information, email filtering and phishing protection to reduce the most common attack vector, and staff awareness training to help your team spot suspicious emails and links.
At BCNS, we’ve been supporting charities across Plymouth, Devon, and the wider UK since 1999. We understand the unique pressures that IT support for charities must address: tight budgets, small teams, and the need to direct as much funding as possible towards the cause itself. That’s why every relationship starts with a free consultation to understand your specific needs before we design a bespoke IT support solution that fits.
Building Donor Trust Through Stronger Security
Cyber security is not just a back-office concern. It is increasingly a factor in how donors, funders, and regulators assess a charity’s credibility. Grant-makers and institutional funders are asking more detailed questions about data handling practices. Individual donors are becoming more aware of where their personal information ends up.
A charity that can demonstrate robust data protection, from encrypted systems and regular backups to documented incident response plans, sends a clear signal: we take our responsibilities seriously. That confidence filters through to every interaction, from online donation pages to volunteer sign-up forms.
When you work with a dedicated IT support partner, you gain not only the technical protection your systems need but also the documentation and governance support that helps you demonstrate compliance to funders and regulators alike.
Take the First Step
Cyber threats are not slowing down, and charities cannot afford to wait until an incident forces their hand. Whether you are a small Devon charity with a handful of staff or a national organisation managing thousands of supporter records, the time to review your cyber security posture is now.
Book a free IT support consultation with BCNS, and let’s talk about how we can help protect your charity’s data, your donors’ trust, and your ability to keep doing the work that matters.
