Cyber Advisor
The cyber advisor scheme assures organisations to provide general cyber security advice and support to a broad range of UK organisations.
In this scheme
Information for Cyber Advisor buyers
It can be difficult for small organisations to know who to turn to for reliable cyber security advice. Our network of Cyber Advisors can offer you practical guidance and hands on help that you can trust. Cyber Advisors have all been assessed not just on their technical knowledge, but also their ability to work specifically with small organisations.
All Cyber Advisors must work for a company which has met the NCSC’s standards and been accepted as an Assured Service Provider. The list of Assured Service Providers is available on the NCSC website, but prospective users of the scheme may wish to check our scheme Delivery Partner's (IASME) website for the most up-to-date list of Approved Service Providers and Cyber Advisors.
For providers working with larger, nationally critical or complex organisations, please refer to our Assured Cyber Security Consultancy scheme, which offers help tackling complex cyber security challenges.
About the Cyber Advisor scheme
Cyber Advisors will initially focus on helping organisations to implement the five Cyber Essentials Technical Controls. This service will be known as Cyber Advisor (Cyber Essentials).
Cyber Advisors (Cyber Essentials) can help you assess the gap between your current cyber security stance, and that achieved by implementing the Cyber Essentials technical controls. This might sound daunting, but this service is tailored towards small and medium sized organisations and the Advisors have all been assessed not just on their technical knowledge, but also their ability to work specifically with small organisations.
We believe that the technical controls set out in Cyber Essentials can help you to avoid many commonly experienced cyber attacks, including ransomware attacks.
How does it work ?
Your Cyber Advisor will first identify gaps in your cyber security before recommending how your organisation can best address them. They can also provide hands-on support to take recommended actions, or work with you to do so. Your specific business needs will guide everything that they do.
While they will work to help you meet the Cyber Essentials technical controls, you do not need to be aiming for Cyber Essentials certification. The advice offered by Cyber Advisors will help you to prepare should you wish to do so. You would need to apply for this through a Cyber Essentials Certification Body.
How to select a Cyber Advisor
All Cyber Advisors must work for a company which has met the NCSC’s standards and been accepted as an Assured Service Provider. When choosing a provider, you may wish to consider whether they have the relevant experience in the sectors you operate in, or in the technology that you use.
There is no recommended price for assured Cyber Advisors to charge. Each job will vary dependent upon the size of your organisation and the complexity of your IT.
Further details are available on our scheme Delivery Partner’s (IASME) website.
Considerations for using a Cyber Advisor
Cyber Advisors must be employed by an Assured Service Provider. This means that Cyber Advisors have met the NCSC standard and have passed an assessment. By choosing a Cyber Advisor through one of our Assured Service Providers, you can have confidence that they have met the NCSC standard and can be trusted to act in our name. They will have had to demonstrate a proven track record of delivering high quality customer service and tailored advice to meet your needs.