Almost a third of UK manufacturers (30%) experienced a cyber incident over the past year, either directly or through their supply chain. Despite this, the sector’s cyber resilience maturity remains far from optimal, according to a new report by Make UK.
In a new report, titled Cyber Security in Manufacturing, published on August 10, the national trade association for the UK manufacturing sector drew upon data from its own Cyber Resilience 2026 survey alongside broader industry and government data to assess the sector's readiness against digital threats.
The findings highlighted how cyber incidents carry a heavy operational and financial cost.
Reduced production capacity and operational delays were experienced by 31% of affected businesses. Meanwhile, 23% suffered component or material shortages and 31% of manufacturers hit by cyber-attacks reported delays in delivering products to customers.
Operational Preparedness Outpaced by Evolving Risk
While the report indicated that awareness is growing across the sector, preparedness remains starkly uneven. Many British manufacturing firms have implemented basic cyber hygiene measures, but critical structural gaps persist.
For instance, while 51% of respondents confirmed having a formal cyber incident response plan in place and 45% have designated senior leadership responsibility for cybersecurity, these figures mean nearly half of all UK manufacturers lack either baseline safeguard.
Furthermore, fewer than a quarter of surveyed businesses (23%) employ a dedicated CISO.
The Make UK report noted that this gap in governance comes at a time when cyber readiness has transitioned from a backend IT concern to a primary commercial factor.
Commercial partners and customers increasingly demand proof of robust data protection, continuous uptime and supply chain integrity before entering contracts, the trade association said.
Despite this, almost a third of manufacturers either operate without cyber insurance or are unsure if their current coverage applies to cyber disruption.
Commenting on the report, Andrew Lintell, general manager for EMEA at Claroty, said that despite the 2025 Jaguar Land Rover cyber-attack being “held as a watershed moment for industrial sectors,” the report highlights that many organizations still haven't taken the action that’s desperately needed to boost their security.
“The reality is the industrial control systems, sensors and connected machinery on the factory floor that most IT centric security tools were never built to see. You can't defend or manage, what you can't see, and that's still the norm on most factory floors,” he said.
“In manufacturing, that chaos shows up as halted production lines and missed shipments, not just IT tickets, creating huge financial implications very quickly.”
Make UK’s Cyber Resilience Recommendations
Looking ahead to what industry leadership must address to close these vulnerabilities, the report’s conclusion stressed that defensive postures must move beyond passive compliance.
It called on manufacturers to treat cybersecurity as a board-level priority, strengthen basic cyber hygiene, improve supplier assurance and make sure recovery plans are tested before disruption hits.
Make UK has set out several core actions for manufacturing firms seeking to strengthen their defensive posture.
- Formalize and regularly stress-test an incident response plan so the organization is prepared before disruption hits
- Implement mandatory workforce cybersecurity awareness training to close internal skills and hygiene gaps
- Elevate third-party supplier assurance protocols to mitigate risks originating within the wider supply chain
- Review and audit insurance policies to verify adequate financial protection against business interruption and operational delays