What is Cyber Essentials Certification?

More than 80% of the cyber-attacks happened on businesses in the UK could have been prevented with implementing some basic security controls. Hence the UK government introduced Cyber Essentials Certification in 2014. It is run by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC)
The Scottish Government has introduced a Cyber Essentials Voucher Scheme for SMEs. You can get up to £1000 towards achieving Cyber Essentials certification. Let’s look at what is Cyber Essentials and how do you get the voucher.

What is Cyber Essentials?
Cyber Essentials is a Government-backed, industry-supported certification and run by National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). It helps businesses to put basic security controls in place to fight most common cybersecurity threats. By achieving the certification your business shows the commitment to Cyber Security.

There are two types of Cyber Essentials (CE) Certifications. Cyber Essentials Level 1 and Cyber Essentials Plus.

Why do you need Cyber Essentials?
By achieving Cyber Essentials your business is showing the commitment for Cyber Security. Your suppliers, partners and clients feel more confident in sharing data with you. If you are tendering for Government projects you must have Cyber Essentials. Some of the MoD projects and Local Authorities are asking for a minimum of Cyber Essentials Plus.