{"id":95197,"date":"2021-06-24T11:45:05","date_gmt":"2021-06-24T10:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/?p=95197"},"modified":"2024-06-28T10:57:58","modified_gmt":"2024-06-28T09:57:58","slug":"construction-cybersecurity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/planning-construction-news\/construction-cybersecurity\/95197\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyber essentials: Starting your construction cybersecurity journey"},"content":{"rendered":"

Peter Hodgson, UK engineering director at Viewpoint<\/a>, takes a look at how the right mindset and strategic approach can make all of the difference in protecting your contracting organisation<\/h2>\n

We often hear about super-sophisticated cyber attacks on corporations originating from criminal masterminds or teams of hackers operating on the dark web, but these really are the tip of an iceberg. Most cyber attacks are very basic in nature and are carried out by relatively unskilled individuals. They\u2019re the digital equivalent of a thief trying your car door to see if it\u2019s unlocked.<\/p>\n

What most astute companies soon realise is that they need a way of reassuring themselves (and their customers) that they have locked the car door and have fitted a car alarm and maybe a GPS tracker. An independent certification is a great way of doing this. It not only provides some confidence, but also can act as a deterrent. Simply seeing that \u201cthis car is fitted with an alarm and GPS tracker\u201d sticker will put most casual criminals off and they will go and try someone else’s car door.<\/p>\n

To get the best value from these certifications, three things are vital:<\/h3>\n
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  1. First, you must start with the attitude that you want to improve and verify your cybersecurity defences and not just to get a certificate to pin on your wall (or website).<\/li>\n
  2. Second, you need to choose the right certification for your business and where you are on your construction cybersecurity journey<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  3. Third, you need to choose a reputable, helpful certification body and get the right advice<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The right attitude<\/h3>\n

    There are absolutely no shortcuts here. Having the right approach to construction cybersecurity is so important<\/a>. It’s a journey that never ends and you need to set out knowing that it will be a long term commitment. The first steps are important, and the sooner you take them the better.<\/p>\n

    A certification body can only check that you are meeting a certain standard and doing all the right things when they evaluate your organisation, so it’s up to you and your company to\u00a0keep<\/em>\u00a0doing all the right things, every day.<\/p>\n

    The right certification<\/h3>\n

    Cyber Essentials is generally where UK businesses start in terms of demonstrating their cybersecurity commitment to themselves and their customers. It\u2019s a simple but effective cybersecurity scheme for construction backed by the UK Government. It aims to help companies of all sizes protect their organisations against a whole range of the most common cyber attacks.<\/p>\n

    It\u2019s recommended you renew these certifications annually. Things move on rapidly when it comes to cybersecurity and you need to be assured that your defences are keeping pace. Regularly renewing certifications again demonstrates your commitment.<\/p>\n

    There are two levels of certification, as outlined by the\u00a0National Cyber Security Centre<\/a>:<\/p>\n