An open call is a formal invitation for organizations to apply for funding, support, or participation in a program. In cybersecurity, it often appears in grants, innovation challenges, sandbox trials, or resilience projects, where vendors, SMEs, or research teams submit proposals against published criteria. The call should define eligibility, scope, deadlines, selection rules, and any security requirements.
Open calls matter because they can move security work from “nice to have” to funded action. They are commonly used to support controls such as identity protection, logging, backup, incident response, or testing of new defenses. They also create a trust surface: attackers may spoof grant announcements or submission portals to steal credentials and documents, so organizations should verify the issuer, domain, and eligibility details before applying. Careful reading is essential, because vague terms or inconsistent budgets can hide mistakes or disqualify an otherwise valid application.