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Cyber Essentials & Cyber Essentials Plus

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The UK government-backed route to demonstrable security

Cyber Essentials is the NCSC-backed certification scheme that protects organisations against the most common internet-borne attacks. It is mandatory for UK government contracts involving personal information — and increasingly expected across NHS, MoD, and enterprise supply chains.

Cyber Essentials is a verified self-assessment across five technical control areas, achievable in 4–6 weeks. Cyber Essentials Plus adds an independent hands-on technical audit of your endpoints, accounts, and network boundary — the higher assurance level sought by public sector buyers.

P2P CyberDefence handles the whole journey: readiness assessment, technical remediation, the questionnaire itself, and CE Plus audit preparation.

NCSC Backed Government Contracts Insurance Discount 4–8 Weeks
"Cyber Essentials is the fastest, most cost-effective way to demonstrate security commitment — and many insurers offer a 10–15% premium reduction for certified organisations."
Fast turnaroundMost organisations certify in 4–8 weeks
The Five Controls

What Cyber Essentials requires you to have

Firewalls

Boundary and device-level firewalls protecting every internet-connected system, with documented rules and no unjustified open services.

Secure Configuration

Systems hardened with unnecessary software removed, default passwords changed, and auto-run features disabled.

User Access Control

Least-privilege access with admin accounts separated from daily-use accounts and used only when necessary.

Malware Protection

Anti-malware or application allow-listing deployed and maintained on all in-scope devices.

Patch Management

Operating systems and software patched within 14 days of critical and high-severity updates being released.

CE Plus: Independent Audit

For CE Plus, a certifying body actively tests all five controls on your real systems — we prepare you so it passes first time.

What We Deliver

Our Cyber Essentials services

Readiness Assessment

Pre-assessment review of all five control areas identifying every technical gap before you submit.

Technical Remediation

Hands-on fixes — firewall rules, Group Policy hardening, admin separation, AV deployment, patch process setup.

SAQ Walkthrough

We complete the self-assessment questionnaire with you, ensuring accurate, correctly-scoped answers.

CE Plus Audit Preparation

Endpoint testing, MFA readiness, and network boundary validation ahead of the independent technical audit.

Annual Renewal Support

Cyber Essentials renews annually. We manage the renewal cycle and review any changes to your environment.

Staff Awareness Training

Phishing, password hygiene, and safe device use training to support the human side of the five controls.

Ready for Cyber Essentials certification?

Unlock government contracts, reduce insurance premiums, and prove your security commitment — most organisations certify within 4–8 weeks with our support.