Welcome to Funded Cyber Support For Accountants

What is Funded Cyber Support For Accountants?

This is a year-long initiative that has been funded by the Scottish Government and facilitated by Lugo. The objective of the project is to provide FREE support to accountancy firms across Scotland to assist them with completing their Cyber Essentials certification.

What is Cyber Essentials?

Cyber Essentials is a government backed accreditation to help encourage businesses around the country to improve their cyber security. To achieve the accreditation, the company must pass an assessment, which costs £300+VAT. For the first time ever, the Scottish Government has provided funding to help accountancy firms prepare for their Cyber Essentials assessment through the Funded Cyber Support For Accountants initiative.

How does Cyber Essentials benefit an accountancy firm?

• Stand out from the competition

  As only a small number of accountancy firms in Scotland have Cyber Essentials certification, taking advantage of this support to get your Cyber Essentials sorted now shows a level of initiative. Once you achieve Cyber Essentials certification, you will be added to a country wide directory of accredited businesses. When potential clients are comparing which firm to engage with, Cyber Essentials may be the factor that pushes that client towards your firm.
   

• Save money in the long term and help prevent the inevitable

  With the rate at which cyber attacks are occurring in the modern world, the question is not “If we suffer a cyber attack” it is “when we suffer a cyber attack”. The Cyber Essentials certification helps companies protect themselves against some of the most prominent threats out there. The cost of getting the certification is minuscule in comparison to the damages to business, reputation and revenue from suffering a cyber attack.
   

• Take responsibility for protecting your clients
  

  Making an effort to get Cyber Essentials shows your clients that you take the security of their data seriously. The Cyber Essentials certification gives long standing clients and potentials prospects the confidence they need to contract with a firm that prioritises the safety of their clients’ data.
   

• Confidence in your cyber security

  A lot of people assume that if you have an IT department, then your cyber security is sorted. Sadly, this is not the case. A lot of companies operating under this false pretence are vulnerable to cyber-attacks, whether they know it or not. Achieving Cyber Essentials can help lift the veil of ignorance and help you address the vulnerabilities affecting your practice.

What free services are available from the Funded Cyber Support programme? 

• On site visit from a cyber security specialist
  

  A Cyber Security Consultant will meet with you and your firm at your office. They can gain an initial assessment of your current level of cyber security, carry out educational workshops to help staff and inform them of the threat affecting their practice, all in plain English.
   

• Translate technical jargon into actionable advice

  Cyber security is an extremely technical subject matter and can be confusing without a technical background. Our Cyber Security Consultant can help make sense of technical advice and provide your staff with understandable information they can use.

   

• Walkthrough and explanation of Cyber Essentials toolkit

  There are a wealth of tools that you can use to help prepare for your Cyber Essentials assessment. Our Cyber Security Consultant can interpret the results of these tools to help equip you for the Cyber Essentials assessment.
   

• Make a plan to keep you and your clients safe moving forward

  Cyber Essentials certification is renewed annually, therefore we will support you to plan your cyber security for the coming year. We are also able to run sessions to educate your clients on the importance of cyber security and achieving Cyber Essentials certification for their businesses.