The NCSC’s Cyber Advisor scheme marked its first anniversary earlier this year, at CYBERUK. But I have been waiting ‘till now to update you on how things are going because I really wanted to mark the arrival of the 100th advisor onto the scheme.
Thinking back a little over a year ago, though, I can recall the excitement (and nervousness) we all felt at launching something different to our usual schemes – a consultancy service, with the capacity to scale up many times over, aimed at small organisations, to help them achieve a baseline level of cyber security, as defined by Cyber Essentials.
We knew there was a need. We knew the standard was good. We were certain that Cyber Essentials was a solid foundation. What we couldn’t be sure of is whether individuals and companies would want to take the assessments and meet the standard to join the scheme as providers. And we couldn’t be absolutely sure that small organisations would be willing to pay Cyber Advisors to help them.
However, a year on and we’re starting to see real growth in the scheme. In parallel, we’re also gaining some fantastic feedback from client organisations on the value of consulting with a Cyber Advisor, not just in terms of a one-time engagement to put the CE Technical Controls in place – and sometimes obtain a certificate – but more fundamentally, in helping small organisations to understand their cyber risk, and to be more confident and proactive in protecting themselves.
Our Delivery Partner, IASME, recently shared several fantastic quotes on the scheme from Advisors, as well as their customers.
However, we cannot rest on our laurels. There are 5.6 million small organisations in the UK. 100 Cyber Advisors cannot reach them all. If we’re going to get to a point where no small organisation needing help is beyond reasonable travelling distance of a Cyber Advisor, we need to grow the scheme further and attract more companies to become Cyber Advisors.
Our Assessment Provider, The Cyber Scheme, has lots of assessment slots available. So if you’re interested in taking the assessment, please go to their website to find out dates and locations. There, you can also access a plethora of supporting material, including additional advice and guidance for candidates keen to sit the exam.
If you are looking for cyber support, you can now find all our Cyber Advisor providers across the UK, on our scheme webpage.
Catherine H
Head of Assured Professional Services Schemes, Industry Assurance, NCSC
