Cyber Essentials

Cyber Essentials is a UK Government-backed compliance standard that sets a good baseline security standard for any organisation. It comprises 5 simple technical controls that together increase your cyber defences, protecting your business against around 80% of opportunistic attacks. It’s a self-assessment questionnaire that’s marked by a registered certification body, such as Defense.com™.

Cyber Essentials Plus certification is stronger than the standard Cyber Essentials certification. It’s all the requirements of basic Cyber Essentials, plus independent verification of your self-assessment. It also involves a vulnerability scan. Defense.com™ recommends all organisations aim for Cyber Essentials Plus certification, as with a little extra work, you get a much stronger certification, and better security.

Cyber Essentials or Cyber Essentials Plus is mandatory for businesses wanting to bid for certain UK Government, NHS, MoD and other public sector contracts. Holding a valid Cyber Essentials certification is increasingly becoming seen as a standard requirement amongst business of all industry sizes and sectors.

The length of time needed to get Cyber Essentials or Cyber Essentials Plus certification depends on the resources you have available and the state of your current security defences. If you’re in a rush, or you have low internal resource to spare, Defense.com™ offer Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus packages that come with consultant-led support and tailored policy documents.

The base level of Cyber Essentials certification (not Cyber Essentials Plus) includes following a five step assessment of your security controls and completing a questionnaire. The questionnaire is then marked by an official certification body, such as Defense.com™. We provide guidance to help you set the right security controls, policies and procedures.

Successfully completing Cyber Essentials or Cyber Essentials Plus and maintaining your compliance is valuable to business of all sizes. The CE scheme is increasingly becoming seen as a standard requirement amongst business of all industry sizes and sectors within the UK. It also demonstrates to your existing and potential customers that you’re a responsible business that takes security seriously, boosting your reputation. This applies both inside and outside the UK.

Certification for Cyber Essentials and CE Plus lasts for one calendar year. To maintain your compliance, you must re-certify every year. This is generally easier than achieving compliance in the first place. Defense.com™ customers will get re-certification reminders in plenty of time, so your compliance doesn’t expire, and we’re always on-hand to help you through the process.

Cyber Essentials started in the UK and is backed by the UK Government, but there’s nothing stopping non-UK companies being certified against this valuable standard. In fact, the Cyber Essentials scheme is increasingly seen as a valid cyber security standard right across the world. We also offer our own Defense.com™ Health Check to organisations outside of the UK.