Call for Applications: Common Good Cyber Fund Grant Program 2026 – Up to $300,000 for Nonprofit Cybersecurity Organizations

Application Deadline: August 4, 2026 (21:00 UTC)

About the Fund

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, the German Federal Foreign Office, Global Affairs Canada, the Internet Society, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The nonprofit cybersecurity ecosystem plays a vital yet under-recognized role in countering digital 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.

Program Objectives

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

Objective 1: Maintenance of Critical Cybersecurity Infrastructure
This program objective supports the Internet’s shared security “plumbing” the technical services and operational capabilities that many organizations rely on, but few can fund on their own.

Examples of work supported:

• Internet infrastructure protection, including DNS security, routing security, secure defaults, and other widely deployed controls
• Large-scale threat detection and analysis, including noncommercial threat intelligence that can be shared responsibly
• Response-enabling services that help others act faster, including tooling, coordination, automation, and operational support
• Maintenance and improvement of security-relevant open systems where long-term upkeep is the primary constraint

Objective 2: Delivery of Scalable Support to Secure Internet Users from Digital Harm
This program objective funds capabilities that protect people and organizations facing persistent digital threats, including state-directed cyber activity and digital transnational repression (DTNR).

Examples of work supported:

• Rapid response and incident assistance for civil society and independent media, including account takeover recovery, device triage, and secure restoration workflows
• Threat-informed hardening and secure onboarding for high-risk users, including safer email and endpoint practices, multi-factor authentication (MFA), account recovery, backups, and secure communications
• Protective service delivery at scale, including managed support models, “clinics,” remote assistance, and regional responder networks
• Privacy-preserving coordination and information sharing that surfaces patterns and actionable indicators

Objective 3: Advancement of a Safer Internet for Vulnerable Groups and High-Risk Communities
This program objective supports work that translates operational insight into safer outcomes for vulnerable groups and high-risk communities, including civil society and journalists.

Examples of work supported:

• Evidence-based policy or standards work grounded in operational threat realities, aimed at concrete improvements in protective practice, platform safeguards, or security defaults
• Responsible vulnerability and abuse reporting pathways, including coordination that improves how threats are surfaced and mitigated
• Norms and coordination mechanisms that improve ecosystem response, such as incident coordination protocols, trusted escalation channels, and shared approaches

Eligibility and 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.

Eligibility Requirements:

• Qualifying nonprofit organization (U.S. 501(c)(3) or equivalent) focused on cybersecurity
• Official bank account in the organization’s name that can receive funds from a foundation based in the United States
• 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

2026 Priorities:

• 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
• Organizations with a history of addressing issues of gender equity, including technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV), will be additionally prioritized when applying for grants aligned with Objectives 2 and 3

Funding Details

• Total Funding in 2026: At least USD $3.5 million
• Grant Type: Multi-year operating grants
• Grant Range: Typically USD $100,000 to $300,000
• Maximum Grant Amount: $300,000 over the full grant period
• Grant Duration: Two years

Why This Fund Matters

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. 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. The Common Good Cyber Fund addresses this gap by providing multi-year operating grants to strengthen the cybersecurity infrastructure and services that protect high-risk communities. For nonprofit organizations working on cybersecurity infrastructure, threat detection, incident response, digital security training, or advocacy for safer online spaces, this fund offers significant support to sustain and scale their critical work.

Governance and Decision-Making

• The Internet Society Foundation is the grantmaking organization that developed the Common Good Cyber Fund grant program, 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.
• An Independent Program Review Committee (IPRC) will be convened to support the open call for proposal process. Reviewers will be selected from diverse backgrounds and geographies, including cybersecurity experts and cross-sector professionals.

Timeline

• Call for Proposals Launches: June 2026
• Application Window: Open for at least six weeks
• Application Deadline: August 4, 2026 (21:00 UTC)
• Screening: Late July 2026
• Notification: Declined applicants will be notified after grant awards have been made

Due to the high volume of applications anticipated, individual feedback on declined proposals will not be possible.

How to Apply

Applications will be accepted through an open call from June 23 to August 4, 2026 at 21:00 UTC.

Application Link:  Click here to apply

Application Process:

1. Sign up for the Internet Society Foundation newsletter to receive updates about the Fund and the application window
2. Register your organization in the Foundation’s grants management system (Fluxx) prior to the application window opening (required at least 24 hours before the deadline)
3. Complete the online form and upload required supporting documents
4. Submit your application before the deadline

No e-mail submissions will be accepted.

Required Documents:

• A current operational budget
• Tax Identification Document
• Organization governing document (such as articles of incorporation, organization charter, or bylaws)
• A list of current institutional funders and the amounts they provide
• National tax returns from the two most recent available fiscal years
• Audited financials from the two most recent available fiscal years
• (Optional) 501(c)(3) Equivalency Determination (if applicable and if available)

For More Information: Visit the Official Internet Society Foundation Common Good Cyber Fund Page