Strengthening Your Cyber Resilience with Cyber Essentials Plus (CE+)

Last month, we looked at the updates to Cyber Essentials from April 2026 and what they mean in practice. This time, we’re taking the conversation a step further by exploring Cyber Essentials Plus (CE+) and why it’s increasingly becoming part of a sensible, long-term security strategy for UK businesses.

A changing threat landscape

It’s no secret that cyber threats continue to rise. Many businesses, both within our own client base and across the wider industry are reporting a steady stream of malicious activity. This trend tends to intensify during periods of economic uncertainty, when organisations may be more vulnerable and attackers more opportunistic.

As a result, expectations around cyber security are changing. It’s no longer enough to simply have tools in place; businesses are increasingly being asked to prove that their security controls are effective and consistently applied through cyber security certifications.

This is where Cyber Essentials Plus comes into the picture.

The same scheme but a higher level of assurance

Cyber Essentials provides a solid foundation through a verified self-assessment questionnaire, but CE+ takes things further by adding independent technical verification. In other words, it’s a hands-on audit by a qualified professional of your systems to confirm that controls are properly implemented. Both assessments are based on the same technical requirements.

For many businesses, this verification distinction is important. It shifts cyber security to something that can be measured, evidenced, trusted and externally verified.

Why CE+ matters in practice

1. Supporting your cyber insurance position

Cyber insurance providers have become significantly more rigorous in recent years. Policies are harder to obtain, premiums are rising and claims are being scrutinised more closely.

Holding CE+ can help strengthen your position by providing independently verified evidence that your controls meet a recognised UK standard. This can:

• Improve your eligibility for cover
• Support more favourable premium discussions
• Reduce the likelihood of disputes if you ever need to claim

For many businesses, this alone is becoming a strong reason to consider CE+.

2. Building trust with clients and partners

Cyber security is now a key part of supplier due diligence. Increasingly, organisations want reassurance that the businesses they work with are not introducing risk into their supply chain.

CE+ provides a clear, recognised way to demonstrate that commitment. Rather than relying on informal assurances, you have a verified certification that shows your controls have been tested and meet a defined standard.

This can help:

• Strengthen client confidence
• Support contract bids and renewals
• Differentiate your business in competitive markets

3. Establishing a baseline for resilience

Beyond compliance and commercial benefits, CE+ also provides a practical framework for understanding your security posture.

It gives you a structured way to:

• Identify gaps or weaknesses in your environment
• Align your security controls with recognised best practices
• Create a roadmap for ongoing improvement

For businesses that may not have large internal security teams, this structured approach can be particularly valuable. It turns cyber security into something manageable and measurable, rather than reactive.

Making CE+ part of everyday operations

One of the common challenges with certifications is that they can become point-in-time exercises, something you prepare for once a year and then move on from.

In reality, cyber security doesn’t stand still. Systems change and new risks emerge. Maintaining the standard is just as important as achieving it.

A more effective approach is to treat CE+ as an ongoing process rather than a one-off project.

Digital Origin offer CE+ as a fully managed 12-month service, designed to ensure:

• You are always audit-ready, not just once per year
• Continuous monitoring validates that controls remain in place
• Any changes to your infrastructure are assessed against CE+ requirements
• Remediation is proactively managed before issues become risks

This approach turns CE+ into a living, continuously enforced security standard across your business. We take ownership of the process end-to-end:

• Completing an initial environment assessment
• Identifying and remediating any gaps
• Managing the full accreditation process
• Transitioning you into a 12-month managed compliance model

So, is Cyber Essentials Plus (CE+) worth it?

For many businesses, the answer increasingly depends on their goals:

• If you’re looking to strengthen your insurance position
• If your clients or partners are asking for stronger security assurances
• Or if you want a clear, practical benchmark for improving your cyber resilience

…then Cyber Essentials Plus can provide tangible value.

CE+ is about having confidence that your security controls are working as intended and being able to demonstrate that clearly to others.

If you would like to discuss this further, either reach out to your Account Manager or send us a message and one of the team will get back to you.