Cyber Essentials is a UK government-backed scheme (Requirements for IT Infrastructure v3.3) that sets out a baseline of technical controls to protect against common cyber attacks. Larger customers increasingly ask their suppliers to meet it, so its themes turn up in questionnaire after questionnaire.
Draft your Cyber Essentials answers free →What Cyber Essentials covers
The scheme is built around five technical control themes. Tickbox grounds your answers in the current (v3.3) requirements:
Every internet-connected device is protected by a correctly configured firewall.
Unnecessary accounts and software are removed, defaults changed, auto-run disabled.
Screens lock behind a PIN, password, or biometric, protected against brute force.
Critical and high-risk updates are applied within 14 days; unsupported software is removed.
Access is through unique accounts with least privilege and tightly controlled admin rights.
MFA is enabled wherever supported, and always for cloud services.
Passkeys, biometrics, and security keys are supported as strong alternatives to passwords.
12-character passwords (or 8 with a deny-list), protected from brute force, no forced expiry.
Anti-malware or application allow-listing stops untrusted code from running.
Cloud services and end-user devices are in scope and cannot be excluded.
Questions you might be asked
- Are firewalls configured on every device that connects to the internet?
- How do you keep devices securely configured and remove unused accounts?
- Do you apply high-risk security updates within 14 days?
- Is multi-factor authentication enabled on your cloud services?
- How are administrator accounts restricted and reviewed?
- How do you protect devices against malware?
How Tickbox helps
Tickbox recognises Cyber Essentials-style questions and drafts an answer for each, phrased in your own words and grounded in the current controls. You stay in control: every answer is a draft you review before sending, never a claim of certification.
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