Common Good Cyber Fund Grant Program

The Common Good Cyber Fund (CGCF), launched in 2025 in close collaboration with the Common Good Cyber Ecosystem Committee and a Strategic Advisory Committee, aims to sustain nonprofit organizations whose work strengthens the public-interest cybersecurity ecosystem. 

CGCF consists of pooled donations from a mix of donors, including the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Craig Newmark Philanthropies, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the United Kingdom, Global Affairs Canada, the Internet Society, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. 

 CGCF Program Objectives 

The Common Good Cyber Fund seeks to fund nonprofits across the globe whose work supports the: 

• Maintenance of critical cybersecurity infrastructure. 
• Delivery of scalable support to secure Internet users from digital harm, including state-directed cyber activity and digital transnational repression.
• Advancement of a safer Internet for vulnerable groups and high-risk communities, including civil society and journalists. 

Program Overview 

Digital and cyber threats are rising in frequency and sophistication, with disproportionate impacts on vulnerable communities and underserved regions where digital defenses are weakest. High-risk actors, including NGOs, journalists, human rights defenders, and dissidents, face targeted activity that can reach across borders in the online information environment. 

The nonprofit cybersecurity ecosystem plays a vital yet under-recognized role in countering these threats, mitigating harm, and defending online civic space. However, this ecosystem remains severely underfunded and overstretched, leaving community actors and vulnerable populations exposed to escalating digital cyber threats. 

The Common Good Cyber Fund is designed to strengthen this ecosystem by supporting the nonprofits who provide these critical services. An initial pilot program was initiated in late 2025, which provided a proof of concept for an open call for applications launching in June 2026. 

Funding supports nonprofits delivering work such as: 

• Secure communications infrastructure and tools. 
• Threat detection, mitigation, and response services. 
• DNS and Internet routing security initiatives.
• Threat intelligence sharing and coordination. 
• Capacity-building for frontline defenders. 
• Public-interest cybersecurity research and development. 

Selection Criteria 

CGCF supports nonprofit organizations whose work aligns with the Fund’s objectives and who provide cybersecurity infrastructure and/or direct services for high-risk digital actors. 

In 2026, CGCF expects to prioritize organizations capable of ecosystem building, especially those based in the global majority, or those with the capacity to regrant to smaller organizations working in the global majority. 

Applications are assessed based on: 

• Confirmation that the applicant is a qualifying nonprofit organization (U.S. 501(c)(3) or equivalent) focused on cybersecurity. 
• Alignment with CGCF’s purpose and program objectives. 
• Evidence that the organization delivers cybersecurity infrastructure and/or services that protect high-risk communities and strengthen broader resilience. 
• Demonstrated organizational capacity, including credible implementation and governance. 
• Potential to contribute to ecosystem building, including reach across geographies and, where relevant, the ability to support smaller organizations. 

Governance and Decision-Making 

The Internet Society Foundation is the grantmaking organization that developed the Common Good Cyber Fund grant program in furtherance of the Fund’s purposes, manages grant applications, reviews applicants and prospective grantees, selects grantees, and oversees grant management and reporting. 

The Global Cyber Alliance (GCA) chairs the Fund’s Strategic Advisory Committee, which is made up of technical and policy experts who provide strategic advice and guidance to help ensure the Fund remains responsive to evolving threats and needs. 

To support the open call for proposal process, an Independent Program Review Committee (IPRC) will be convened. Reviewers will be selected from diverse backgrounds and geographies, including cybersecurity experts and cross-sector professionals (civil society, journalism, policy, and research). 

Funding

In 2026, the Internet Society Foundation is expected to award at least USD $3.5 million through multi-year operating grants funded by the Common Good Cyber Fund. 

• Launch by June 2026, with an application window open for at least six weeks. 
• Begin screening applications by late July, with the strongest applications advancing to external review. 
• Declined applicants will be notified of the decisions after grant awards have been made. 
• Due to the high volume of applications anticipated, individual feedback on declined proposals will not be possible.  

Questions? 

If you have questions about this program or the application process, please email [email protected] 

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