It feels like we learn about a new cyberattack every other day. We see it in the news, we hear about it from colleagues, and it’s coming up more often in conversations with customers and insurers. As a result, businesses are under growing pressure to “do more” around cybersecurity.

For many, the difficulty isn’t willingness. It’s not having clear visibility into where the gaps are, and what to focus on first. And that’s completely normal, many businesses are in that same position, especially without dedicated security expertise in-house.

That usually leads to the same questions:

1. “Where do we even begin?” ‍
2. “What risks don’t we know about yet?” ‍
3. “Are we focusing on the right things?” ‍
4. “Would we spot an attack in time?” ‍
5. “What happens if we’re taken offline?”

Wherever you are today, this blog helps clarify which step makes sense for you.

1. “Where do we start?”

If you’re at the very beginning of strengthening your cybersecurity, or you’re looking to understand how well your business is protected, a cyber health check is a great starting point.

It’s a comprehensive audit that assesses your security across technology, people, and processes, and shows you strengths, risks and areas for improvement. All benchmarked against industry frameworks such as NCSC Top 10, CSF and CIS.  

A health check is particularly valuable if you need to:

• Decide where security investment will have the most impact

• See how your current measures align with recognised best-practice standards

• Provide leadership, boards, or investors with recommendations to support informed security decisions

2. “Is what we’ve put in place actually working?”

Once you’ve started putting protections in place, the next question is often about reassurance.  

Penetration testing helps answer that. It puts your existing security to the test, using accredited specialists who look at your systems the way a real attacker would. The goal isn’t to catch you out, but to show what’s holding up well and where weaknesses still exist.

You’re given a clear, prioritised set of actions you can actually act on, helping you strengthen what’s already there and provide reassurance to customers or partners who want confidence in how you protect your business.

This is essential for businesses that:

• Need evidence of testing for customer, partner, insurer, investor, or board requirements

• Are looking for independent assurance

• Run customer-facing or revenue-critical platforms

Important to note: Penetration testing is often seen as the starting point for cybersecurity, but in reality, it works best after you’ve put some basic protections in place. Without that foundation, a test will usually confirm obvious gaps rather than help you move forward, making it a poor use of time and budget.

3. “Have we got the basics covered?”

The reality is that good IT hygiene is one of the strongest defences most businesses have.

Many cyberattacks don’t rely on advanced techniques. They exploit weaknesses that already have fixes available, but were never applied.

Vulnerability and patch management focuses on keeping those basics covered, by continuously scanning for issues and applying updates automatically across your environment.

This helps you:

• Reduce the risk of exploitation by fixing known weaknesses quickly

• Ensure updates are applied across laptops, cloud systems, and firewalls

• Remove the day-to-day burden from your internal IT team

4. “Would we be able to detect an attack?”

Many attacks aren’t obvious. They often happen outside working hours and blend into normal activity. Without continuous monitoring, most businesses only discover an issue after damage has already been done.

A security operations centre, known in cybersecurity as a SOC, acts as your external security team. Real people monitor your systems around the clock, investigate unusual activity as it happens, and step in as soon as something looks suspicious.

It’s great for businesses that:

• Don’t have an in-house cybersecurity team

• Want peace of mind that their systems are always being watched

• Need protection beyond the basics

• Want confidence that attacks won’t be missed

5. “What happens if we’re taken offline?”

DDoS attacks are one of the most common causes of disruption for online businesses. If your business relies on online platforms such as e-commerce sites or client portals, staying online is critical.

DDoS protection filters malicious traffic before it reaches your systems, keeping services available during an attack and protecting your customers, operations, and reputation. It’s a simple, cost-effective way to reduce the risk of being taken offline.

Still not sure which solution is right for your business?

We’re here to meet you wherever you’re at. Our in-house team runs these services directly and works with you to advise on the right protection for your business, now and as it changes.