Cyber Essentials certification will help your organisation to guard against 80% of common cyber threats and is a cost-effective way of ensuring a standard level of cyber security assurance is in place. The certification is also the perfect way for an organisation to demonstrate their commitment to cyber security.
When embarking on IT procurement, anything that can help you stand out from the crowd may well be beneficial. Displaying a strong understanding of cyber security whilst simultaneously showing that your organisation has taken steps to implement a cyber security plan is likely to look good when dealing in IT procurement. Cyber Essentials certification allows you to show that your organisation is prepared in the event of cyber attack and secure against the threats out there.
WannaCry
As last May’s WannaCry ransomware attack showed, outdated IT systems are vulnerable to cyber attacks. The NHS was effectively crippled and the finger has been pointed towards the outdated systems and software that the NHS uses. Of course more systems were infected than just the NHS – whilst the National Health Service dominated the headlines, WannaCry spread to an estimated 200,000+ computers across 150 countries.
Still, an independent investigation conducted by the National Audit Office found that WannaCry would not have had such a devastating impact on the NHS had it had basic IT security measures in place, while an estimated 5% of NHS systems were still using the Windows XP system, practically a dinosaur in the realms of cyber security.
The cost of cyber security
According to the Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2017 46% of businesses detected breaches in the 12 months leading up to the survey with the average cost of each attack being £1,570.
However, for the average large firm, the price is actually much higher at £19,600, though the average medium firm (£3,070) and micro and small firm (£1,380) also incur sizeable costs. These are high prices to pay for basic failings in cyber security.
Cyber Essentials
Through Tracker Intelligence you can become Cyber Essentials certified from just £300 ex VAT. If you would like to learn more about the certification, you can start by downloading our free Cyber Essentials scheme summary.
Alternatively, you can start your journey to becoming certified by following this link.
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