Have you heard about Cyber Essentials?
It’s a UK certification scheme designed to show whether an organisation has cyber security protection in place.
This Government-backed scheme can help protect organisations of all sizes against some of the most basic, common cyber-attacks.
There are many benefits of getting a Cyber Essentials certification, including:
• The ability to show customers and prospective clients that you are cyber-aware and working to protect your IT systems against cyber-attacks.
• The chance to use the Cyber Essentials certification as part of your marketing efforts to attract new customers, by showing that you’re a professional organisation that takes cyber-security seriously.
• The peace-of-mind of having a clear vision of your organisation’s cyber security status.
• The chance to tender for any Government or other contracts that may involve handling sensitive or personal information, as many may require a Cyber Essentials certification in the future.
Cyber Essentials helps organisations put controls in place that can prevent some of the most common attacks. Quite often, cyber thieves are opportunists looking for easy targets, such as those organisations who aren’t cyber aware and don’t have even the minimum level of protection in place. It’s a bit like a passing thief trying your front door, just in case you left it unlocked!
It’s possible that, going forward, insurance companies and other such providers may start to ask for proof of cyber-security awareness, such as a valid Cyber Essentials certificate.
There are 2 levels of certification – Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus. The main difference is that Cyber Essentials Plus involves a hands-on technical verification.
First Class Technologies offers a consultancy service to help organisations with Cyber Essentials, by running a necessary audit across a company’s IT network to review the current set-up and then advise and support any remedial action required. For more information contact us.
