Tested backups and the government's baseline certificate
Backups and Cyber Essentials
Backups that are checked every morning and restored for real once a quarter, and Cyber Essentials, the government-backed certificate many contracts and insurers now ask for: we get you ready, fix what fails, and submit it with you.
A backup nobody has tested is a hope. We set up backups for the machines and for Microsoft 365, read the report every morning, and once a quarter restore a real folder of yours to prove it works. The restore is written up in your monthly report.
For most small offices that is three copies: Microsoft 365 backed up to a separate cloud service, because Microsoft keeps your data running but does not promise to get back what you deleted; the shared files on a small storage unit in the office; and that unit copied off site every night. A practice or a firm with a server gets an image backup of the server as well.
Cyber Essentials is a short list of controls: a firewall, secure settings, user access, malware protection and up-to-date software. The hard part is the last one, every device patched within fourteen days. We run a readiness check, fix what fails, help you fill in the questionnaire and submit it to the certification body. Plan clients usually pass first time because the patching is already done.
What is included
- Microsoft 365 mailboxes, OneDrive and SharePoint backed up
- Office files to a storage unit, copied off site nightly
- The backup report read every working morning
- A real restore tested every quarter and written up
- Cyber Essentials readiness check, fixes and submission
- Help with the questions your insurer asks
What it costs
Microsoft 365 backup £4 a user a month, included on Business Plus. Cyber Essentials readiness and submission from £650 for up to ten devices, plus the assessor's fee. Prices exclude VAT. The plan picker prices a monthly plan from your people and devices, and the repair list has the fixed labour price for the common bench jobs.
Questions about backups and Cyber Essentials
Does Microsoft not back up my email?
Microsoft keeps the service running and holds deleted items for a limited time. It does not promise to restore something you deleted months ago, or what a compromised account deleted. A separate backup does.
Is Cyber Essentials worth it for a small firm?
If a customer, a council contract or your insurer asks for it, yes. If nobody asks, the controls are still the right ones, and a plan gives you most of them without the certificate.
Ring the desk, or bring it in.
A person answers 01685 496 0880 from eight till six on weekdays. For a repair, bring the machine to the counter on Castle Street; for a plan, book a free IT review and Rhys will come and look at what you have.