Cyber security is easy to claim. We believe it is better to have it independently tested.
Mackman Group has achieved Cyber Essentials Plus certification, following the successful renewal of our Cyber Essentials certification.
Rather than stopping at the recognised baseline provided by Cyber Essentials, we chose to go further, putting our technical cyber security controls through independent testing to verify that they are working effectively in practice.
For us, this is about more than achieving another certification. Cyber Essentials Plus forms part of a much wider framework of safeguards, governance and good practice that we have been developing across Mackman Group to help us manage information, technology and risk responsibly.
What Is Cyber Essentials Plus?
Cyber Essentials is a UK Government backed certification scheme designed to help organisations protect themselves against common cyber threats.
The scheme focuses on five key areas of technical protection: firewalls, secure configuration, security updates, user access control and malware protection.
Cyber Essentials Plus builds on the same requirements but adds independent technical testing. Rather than relying solely on an organisation demonstrating that the required controls have been implemented, an independent assessor tests those controls to verify that they are operating effectively in practice.
That distinction was important to us.
We first achieved Cyber Essentials certification in 2025. When the time came to renew, we could simply have maintained that level of certification. Instead, we chose to subject our technical controls to the additional scrutiny required for Cyber Essentials Plus.
Why Independent Testing Matters
Our clients trust us with information, systems and, in many cases, commercially sensitive work.
Across Mackman Group, our work encompasses strategic consultancy, research, branding and marketing, website development and ongoing digital services. Each creates responsibilities around how information and technology are accessed, managed and protected.
Protecting that trust requires more than policies and good intentions.
It requires appropriate safeguards, clear responsibilities, effective governance, regular scrutiny and a willingness to test whether the controls we have put in place are actually working.
Cyber Essentials Plus gives us independent evidence that important technical elements of those safeguards are operating effectively.
It reflects one of the principles that guides our consultancy more broadly: evidence before assumption.
Cyber Essentials Plus As Part of A Wider Framework
Our work across research, marketing, branding, website development, and ongoing digital services involves systems, technology, and information that our clients trust us to handle Cyber security does not operate in isolation.
Technical controls are important, but they need to sit within an organisation that understands its responsibilities, manages risk appropriately and gives its people clear processes and guardrails within which to work.
That is why Cyber Essentials Plus is one component of a much broader programme of work across Mackman Group.
Behind the scenes, we have continued to develop the policies, processes, controls, responsibilities and governance that support how we manage information, technology and organisational risk.
Some of that work is necessarily less visible than a certification badge. But it is arguably more important.
Our aim is to embed recognised standards and responsible practices into the way we operate, creating a more structured, resilient and accountable organisation rather than treating compliance as a periodic exercise.
Cyber Essentials Plus provides independent verification of an important technical part of that wider framework.
What Does Cyber Essentials Plus Mean For Our Clients?
For our clients and partners, our Cyber Essentials Plus certification provides:
Independent technical testing of key cyber security controls
Greater assurance around the systems supporting the work we deliver
Evidence that recognised technical safeguards have been implemented and tested
An additional layer of scrutiny around how we protect business and client information
Evidence of our continuing investment in professional and operational standards
Certification cannot eliminate cyber risk, and we would never suggest that it can.
Threats change, technology develops and organisations themselves evolve. Managing cyber security therefore requires continual attention rather than a one off exercise.
Independent assessment gives us an important way to test our controls, identify areas for improvement and demonstrate that recognised safeguards are in place.
Raising The Standards Behind Our Work
As a consultancy, we believe the standards behind our work matter just as much as the work our clients see.
Cyber Essentials Plus is therefore not an end point. It is part of our continuing investment in the professional, operational and governance standards that underpin Mackman Group.
That means continuing to scrutinise how we work, strengthening safeguards where appropriate and embedding good governance into our everyday decisions and processes.
Ultimately, it comes back to trust.
Our clients should be able to expect us to handle their information responsibly, manage technology carefully and take appropriate steps to understand and reduce risk.
Cyber Essentials Plus provides independent evidence that an important part of those safeguards has been put to the test.
For us, that is what professional standards should do: move beyond what an organisation says about itself and provide evidence of how it actually operates.
What does this mean for our services?
Cyber Essentials Plus supports work delivered across Mackman Group. You can read more about what this means in the context of our branding, marketing and digital services and our approach to responsible research.