Cyber Essentials keeps coming up in conversations about client contracts, cyber insurance, and "am I doing enough" security worries. The certification itself is straightforward once you know what's coming - here's how to make the process as smooth as possible.
1. Know your scope before you start
Decide exactly which devices, cloud services and user accounts fall "in scope" before you begin the questionnaire. Getting this wrong is one of the most common reasons applications drag on - either you're answering questions about kit that isn't actually relevant, or missing something that is.
2. Sort out multi-factor authentication first
MFA on your email, cloud services and admin accounts is one of the five technical controls, and it's usually the biggest single gap we find. Turning it on for every account that supports it, particularly anything with admin rights, is the highest-value thing you can do before applying.
3. Get your patching up to date
Out-of-date software and firmware is another common trip-up. Cyber Essentials expects security updates to be applied promptly after release. If patching has been ad hoc, tidy it up - and put something in place to keep it that way, not just for the assessment.
4. Review who has admin rights
Every admin account is a bigger target. Go through your systems and remove admin rights from anyone who doesn't genuinely need them day-to-day - including old staff accounts that should have been deactivated already.
5. Do a dry run before the real thing
The self-assessment questionnaire is detailed, and some of the language is more technical than it needs to be. Working through it with someone who's done it before - rather than alone the night before it's due - saves a lot of back-and-forth with the certification body.
None of this is complicated, but it does take a bit of organising, especially the first time. If you'd rather have someone handle the whole thing for you, book a complimentary IT call and we'll take it from there.
