In today’s digital landscape, safeguarding your organisation’s data and systems is vital. Research shows that hackers scan business networks at least once every 30 seconds looking for weaknesses and vulnerabilities, therefore it’s critical you have the right tools in place and regularly review them.
To help protect your organisation against common threats and build trust with your clients, partners and suppliers, you must regularly assess your compliance levels and getting Cyber Essentials certified is a great step in the right direction.
Only 12% of businesses and 11% of charities are reported to be aware of the UK government-backed Cyber Essential scheme, which reaps the question, are you Cyber Essentials certified yet?
What is Cyber Essentials?
The Cyber Essentials scheme outlines key security procedures your organisation should have in place to help protect against a wide range of cyber threats. The certification lasts for 12 months, therefore it should be on your annual agenda.
There are two levels to the Cyber Essentials accreditation, Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus. Getting Cyber Essentials certified is a good starting point for all organisations, including educational establishments and not-for-profits, and involves you completing a basic self-assessment questionnaire to gain the Cyber Essentials certification.
If you are looking for a more weighted level of certification, actively growing your business or have higher security requirements, then the Cyber Essentials Plus certification is for you, where an independent body assesses your organisation by conducting an on-site technical audit.
What are the Cyber Essentials accreditation requirements?
To achieve the Cyber Essentials accreditation, your organisation must provide evidence against five key security controls:
- Firewalls: To control incoming and outgoing network traffic, it is required that your organisation has secure network perimeters and properly configured firewalls.
- Secure Configuration: To reduce vulnerabilities, it Is important that you securely configure and maintain all systems and devices.
- User Access Control: You must provide users with the appropriate access controls, only granting access to sensitive information and systems when needed for their roles.
- Malware Protection: To defend against malware, it is required that you install and update antivirus software when necessary. You should also implement procedures to detect and remove malicious software.
- Patch Management: It is essential that the latest security patches are up to date on all devices. This is a key requirement as these patches address known vulnerabilities and help keep your organisation safe.
For a more rigorous assessment, you can pursue Cyber Essentials Plus certification, which includes an on-site assessment to verify the implementation of these controls.
According to a GOV.UK 2024 report, only 22% of businesses and 14% of charities report having technical controls in all five areas. Fulfilling these areas act as a minimum to help protect your organisation against the most common cyber threats, so it is concerning that so many organisations are leaving themselves vulnerable.
What is the importance of year-round security compliance?
Achieving the Cyber Essentials accreditation is just the beginning. Cyber threats are constantly evolving and It’s important that your organisation maintains year-round compliance to stay protected.
Failing to protect your endpoints can have severe consequences, including data breaches, financial loss, operational downtime and a damaged reputation. Regularly reviewing and updating your security measures is essential to mitigate these risks.
Having robust cyber security solutions in place and actively updating and reviewing these will give your organisation the best chance of keeping your data safe.
We recommend having a multi-layered approach when it comes to cyber security compliance and offer the following solutions and services to our clients:
- Email Security Services
- Endpoint Security
- Managed Firewall
- Cyber Security Audit
- Cyber Essentials as a Service
- Cyber Security for Schools
How can Sharp help with Cyber Essentials?
As Cyber Essentials is only an annual certification, we wanted to offer our clients something more.
That’s why we launched Cyber Essentials as a Service. Whilst getting Cyber Essentials certified on a yearly basis is great and demonstrates your commitment to cyber security, the problem lies in the 364 days after the certification.
During the rest of the year, you just don’t know if your devices are compliant, which is where our Cyber Essentials as a Service comes in. With compliance in mind, we will ensure your entire IT infrastructure adheres to the Cyber Essentials requirements all year round, by monitoring compliancy, endpoints and the remediation of any issues that may arise.
We’ll do all of the legwork around following the changes to the Cyber Essentials Plus certification requirements and 6 months prior to your re-certification, we will let you know if anything needs to be actioned to meet these. That way, you’ll be in the best position before your next submission.
We have helped 100s of our clients become Cyber Essentials certified and with our Cyber Essentials as a Service solution, help keep on top of their security compliance all-year round.
