We’ve Just Renewed Our Cyber Essentials Certification!

| Mon, August 01, 2022 | News & Events | 0 comments

Cyber Essentials is a simple but effective, Government-backed scheme that will help us protect New Verve against a whole range of the most common cyber attacks. Certification gives us peace of mind that our defences will protect against the vast majority of common cyber-attacks simply because these attacks are looking for targets which do not have the Cyber Essentials technical controls in place.

At New Verve we are committed to ensuring our customers’ information stays secure; this is why we have renewed our Cyber Essentials certification.

With this certification, we:

1. Have a clear picture of New Verve’s security level.
2. Can reassure our customers that we are working to secure our IT against cyber attacks.
3. Can attract new business with our promise that we have cyber security measures in place.

Keep reading to see how this decision will impact aspects of our organisation and protect customer security further.

Having a Cyber Essentials Certification Reassures our Customers

The Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021, run by the government, found that 39% of businesses had experienced a cyber attack in 2020. This just shows the prevalence of cyber attacks and the need to take security seriously.

A good way to think of Cyber Essentials is as a check-up. Just as we would go for a yearly doctor or dentist check-up, Cyber Essentials is used to check in and ensure all cyber security in the company is running well and is up-to-date.

Customer assurance is a crucial part of why we take part in Cyber Essentials. At New Verve, we want to perform our projects to the best of our ability, including taking into account any potential cyber security risks.

In the NCSC review, it found that over 60% of certified organisations say they are more likely to work with suppliers that have a Cyber Essentials certification. We took this to heart and have been achieving our certification for two years now. We feel confident in these statistics and want to make our customers feel confident in us. By opting for a Cyber Essentials certification we can achieve peace of mind as a company and for our customers. We definitely agree with the 93% of certified organisations that are confident that they are protected against common cyber attacks after gaining their Cyber Essentials certification.

We Have a Clear Picture of Our Security Level, as an Organisation

Cyber Essentials initially works through a self-assessment principle. This means that companies can assess their organisation and flag issues that need to be rectified. This initial process is essential as it identifies vulnerabilities that can make the company stand out to even the most basic cyber attacks. This is crucial as basic vulnerabilities can be a slippery slope making the company a target for more serious and in-depth attention from cybercriminals.

The next step is for Cyber Essentials to provide advice and expertise on how to address these basic issues and prevent the most common types of cyber attacks. The program offers a way towards clarity and organisation of cyber security within an organisation. It highlights the essential security controls that need to be in place to reduce risk.

Once the self-assessment and security controls are completed, everything is verified by a senior executive. This level of scrutiny on our company’s security ensures any weaknesses are uncovered. This is the final step in the Cyber Essentials process and if it is passed, the certification is displayed on the company website for the next year.

It may be the final step in terms of gaining the certification but the NCSC found that certified organisations are more likely to enforce cyber security controls beyond the scheme’s advised controls, and are more aware of possible cyber risks.

This is true in New Verve’s case as last year we removed our ‘local admin’ approach, which was used for employee autonomy and efficiency but flagged as a possible security risk. We take security at New Verve seriously and have actively been taking steps to improve it and our practice. Now, staff seek approval for new software through our service desk; when approved, the software is installed and managed remotely by an authorised staff member using JumpCloud software management. This reduces the risk of unapproved software creating security issues on our company laptops.

By having our Cyber Essentials certification we are protected against roughly 80% of the most common cyber attacks, this includes data theft. It shows we are in control of our business network security and helps our business efficiency and safety.

Training

At New Verve we are constantly improving our skills and knowledge. As of last year, we signed up for iHasco’s GDPR and Cyber Security training courses. This is to ensure any knowledge gaps are filled in our team. Moreover, staff that are specifically responsible for managing data in our workplace have been given advanced training.

We are constantly asking ourselves basic self-auditing questions to keep our knowledge up to date and our learning relevant. For example, is our endpoint security up to date? And, do we have strong passwords that are being changed frequently?

We prioritise training as we understand the effects of a cyber attack or data breach are devastating, not only financially but for our customer trust reputation. Our staff understand the significance of keeping training fresh and constantly being aware, something which we are proud of at New Verve.

Summary

Overall, we are proud at New Verve to share that we have renewed our cyber essentials certification. This certification gives both our team and our clients’ peace of mind. It shows that we have taken steps, precautions and continual training to ensure we are doing our best to protect client and company data from cyber attacks.

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