The reality is that most of these incidents could have been prevented with stronger cyber hygiene and basic security measures. For many organisations, the question isn’t if a cyber incident will happen, but how well prepared they’ll be when it does.
That’s why the UK Government introduced the NCSC Cyber Essentials (CE) scheme to give all organisations, from small businesses to large enterprises, a clear and practical baseline for cyber security.
What is Cyber Essentials (CE)?
Cyber Essentials is a Government-backed certification scheme and minimum baseline standard that protects your organisation’s and your customer’s data from cyber attacks. It was set up for all organisations – from micro businesses to large enterprises and helps protect their systems and data from the most common cyber attacks. With the Cyber Essentials certification your business is protected through robust firewalls and gateways, malware protection, security updates, training on phishing scams and maintaining hygienic digital infrastructure.
Why does it matter?
A staggering 7.7m cyber crimes were experienced by businesses over the past year. That’s half of all businesses in the UK in 2025. Achieving Cyber Essentials helps keep you, your team, your customers and their data safe.
Dr Richard Horne, Chief Executive of the NCSC says cyber security is now a matter of business survival and national resilience. With nearly half the incidents handled by the NCSC deemed to be nationally significant, and a 50% rise in highly significant attacks on last year, our collective exposure to serious impacts is growing at an alarming pace.
The best way to defend against these attacks is for organisations to make themselves as hard a target as possible.
That demands urgency from every business leader: hesitation is a vulnerability, and the future of their business depends on the action they take today. The time to act is now.
Is CE or CE Plus fit for you?
Cyber Essentials is the standard certification. It’s a self-assessment that checks whether your business is protected through robust firewalls and gateways, malware protection, security updates, training on phishing scams and maintaining hygienic digital infrastructure while establishing robust business operating processes and procedures.
For many businesses, achieving Cyber Essentials is the first step toward building a security-minded culture and showing customers that data protection is taken seriously.
Cyber Essentials Plus follows on from the standard certification but adds an independent technical audit carried out by a qualified assessor. This is more than a paperwork exercise, it’s a hands-on verification that your cyber security controls are working effectively in real-world conditions.
It provides a higher level of assurance and is often required by larger clients, government contracts, or regulated industries.
How CAB can help
Cyber Essentials shouldn’t be seen as a technical project or a box-ticking exercise. It’s a business risk control set, a practical framework for managing one of today’s most significant business risks.
When leaders treat Cyber Essentials as part of governance and risk management, rather than an IT task, it becomes far more effective. It helps create accountability, improves decision-making, and builds trust across customers, partners, and stakeholders.
At CAB, we’re proud to be NCSC Assured Service Providers, and we guide businesses across the South West through every step of the Cyber Essentials journey. If you’re looking for a long‑term IT security partner, we’d love to talk.
Get in touch with us to start your Cyber Essentials journey.
