Cyber Essentials is the UK government-backed certificate that shows your business has the five basic technical controls in place that stop the most common internet attacks. Many larger customers and public sector buyers now ask their suppliers for it.
The five controls are: firewalls (a barrier between your computers and the internet), secure configuration (computers and accounts set up safely, default passwords changed), user access control (people only get the access their job needs), malware protection (antivirus and similar), and security update management (keeping software up to date).
There are two levels. For Cyber Essentials, you answer a set of questions about your systems, a director signs the answers off, and an assessor marks them; nobody tests the systems. For Cyber Essentials Plus, an assessor also tests your computers to check the answers hold up. Both last 12 months and are renewed each year.
Central government contracts that involve handling personal information, or supplying certain IT services, require Cyber Essentials, and more private sector customers are asking for it in their supplier checks. It is a baseline, not complete security, so depending on your business you may need more than this.
GoodChoice IT helps London and Surrey businesses get Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus: we check where you are now, fix what needs fixing, help with the questions and prepare you for the assessment, then help you keep it each year. More on our Cyber Essentials page.
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