Purpose

The purpose of this Call is to promote the participation of SMEs located in the territorial demarcation of the Chamber of Commerce of Seville in the "Cybersecure SME Program" by providing them with the support services detailed in Section 6 "Budget and amount of aid" of this Call.

The Program aims to promote the safe and reliable use of cyberspace, protecting citizens’ rights and freedoms while encouraging socio-economic progress. It also seeks to enable SMEs to prevent major cyber risks they can reasonably manage, ensuring that the Information and Telecommunications Systems they use have an appropriate level of cybersecurity. Ultimately, the goal is to contribute to the digital transformation of SMEs, micro-enterprises, and self-employed individuals.

The Program is implemented through the following direct support actions:

Cybersecure SME Assisted Diagnosis. This phase includes a personalized assisted diagnostic system, which enables a comprehensive analysis of the SME’s cybersecurity level and its potential for improving protection by evaluating its dependence on ICT, cyber risks faced, information security culture, and response protocols, thereby identifying the company’s current situation. The analysis will consider technical, organizational, regulatory, and legal aspects, among others.

Financial aid for the implementation of solutions and improvements identified in the Personalized Implementation Plan. This Plan will include the characteristics of the projects to be implemented, the providers freely selected by the company to carry them out, and the committed funding. For each project, eligible concepts and costs, as well as the execution and justification timelines for the investment made, will be defined.

Beneficiary Requirements

  1. Be a small or medium-sized enterprise, as defined in Annex I of Commission Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 of 17 June 2014 http://www.boe.es/doue/2014/187/L00001-00078.pdf. Legal entities and individuals that are validly established at the time of application and conduct economic activity are considered companies. Excluded from this Call are joint ownerships (comunidades de bienes), civil societies without legal personality, temporary business unions (UTE), associations, foundations, and, in general, non-profit entities. Also excluded are self-employed individuals who qualify as corporate or collaborating self-employed workers.
  2. Be registered in the Economic Activities Tax (IAE) for the activity subject to aid before January 1, 2022. Regardless of the IAE headings under which they are registered, companies involved in the primary production of agricultural products listed in Annex I of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and those involved in the primary production of fisheries and aquaculture products (as defined in Art. 2.1 of Regulation (EU) 2023/2831 of December 13, 2023) are excluded.
  3. Have an annual turnover of at least €100,000 in the last closed financial year.
  4. Have their registered office and/or production center in one of the municipalities within the demarcation of the Chamber of Commerce of Seville, according to the census data. If the company has multiple sites or production centers, the one benefiting directly from the aid must be located in one of the listed municipalities.
  5. Be up to date with tax and Social Security obligations.
  6. Not be subject to any of the disqualifications referred to in Article 13 of Law 38/2003, of November 17, General Subsidies Law, or applicable regulations of the corresponding Autonomous Community.
  7. Not be considered an enterprise in difficulty according to Article 2, paragraph 18, of Regulation (EU) No 651/2014, declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market under Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty, and as defined in the EU guidelines on state aid for rescuing and restructuring non-financial firms in difficulty (2014/C149/01).
  8. Comply with the de minimis rule, as provided in Commission Regulation (EU) No 2023/2831 of December 13, 2023, concerning the application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid (OJ L of 15.12.2023). Under this regulation, the total de minimis aid granted to a “single undertaking” must not exceed €300,000 over the previous three years. Note that the definition of “single undertaking” in Article 2.2 of Regulation (EU) 2023/2831 includes linked enterprises as one entity for the purpose of applying this rule.
  9. Technological solutions that have already been funded through the Digital Kit program in any of its calls cannot be financed in the Implementation Phase.
  10. Companies that completed the diagnosis under the 2023 Cybersecurity Program Call may not participate in Phase I of the current Call.
  11. Companies that were beneficiaries in the 2023 Call may not be beneficiaries of Phase II of this Call.
  12. SMEs may apply directly for Phase II if:

a) They have documented their prior participation in Phase I of the 2023 Cybersecurity Program Call.

b) They can prove participation in a similar cybersecurity advisory program for SMEs in the previous year, run by regional promotional bodies, national, regional, or local public entities, or Chambers of Commerce, provided they meet the requirements of this Call.

  1. They meet all the requirements outlined in this Call.

Budget and amount of aid

SUPPORT SERVICES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CYBERSECURE SME SOLUTIONS IN SMES  

The budget allocated under this Call for support services aimed at implementing Cybersecure SME measures in SMEs is €23,593.28. These services are free for companies and are delivered within the framework of public administrative functions entrusted to Chambers of Commerce under Basic Law 4/2014, to strengthen the business fabric. Specifically, services provided by Chamber Technology Advisors include:

  • Cybersecure SME Assisted Diagnosis
  • Implementation Follow-up  

These services will be co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Chamber of Commerce. The cost of these services will be fully pre-financed by the Chamber of Commerce, requiring no financial contribution from the beneficiary SME.

FINANCIAL AID FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CYBERSECURE SME SOLUTIONS IN SMES

The available budget for the implementation phase of the Cybersecure SME Program is €72,760.00, with a total of €61,846.00 allocated as FINANCIAL AID for SMEs, allowing for the estimated participation of 17 companies.
The maximum eligible budget per company for this phase is €4,000 (excluding VAT), though larger-scale implementations are not excluded.
Therefore, the eligible cost associated with action plan implementation will vary per case, with a maximum of €4,280 per company (€4,000.00 direct cost + 7% associated indirect costs), to be fully pre-financed by the beneficiary company.
The maximum aid each company may receive will be 85% of the eligible cost, meaning a maximum grant of €3,638, provided the investment is duly justified within the specified terms and deadlines.  

 

Submission of applications

Interested parties may only submit their application and accompanying documentation through the online form available at the Electronic Office: https://sede.camara.es/sede/sevilla/tramites/TR0000005467 in accordance with the terms set out in this Call.  

Application deadline

The application period will open at 09:00 on June 24, 2024, and close at 14:00 on July 15, 2024.

More information