Cyber Essentials Scheme

Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

June 2014

December 2013

Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

Contents
Contents .................................................................................................................................... 2
Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 3
Who should use this document? ............................................................................................. 3
What can these requirements help an organisation protect? ................................................... 3
Understanding and using this requirements document ............................................................ 3
Threats Requiring Mitigation ....................................................................................................... 5
Controls required for basic technical cyber protection ................................................................. 5
1. Boundary firewalls and internet gateways ............................................................................... 5
2. Secure configuration ........................................................................................................... 7
3. User access control ............................................................................................................. 9
4. Malware protection ............................................................................................................ 10
5. Patch management ........................................................................................................... 12
Where to go for more information .............................................................................................. 13
Annex A: Where these requirements are covered in other cyber standards .............................. 15

Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

Introduction
A primary objective of the UK Governments National Cyber Security Strategy is to make
the UK a safer place to conduct business online. However, determining the benefits of
cyber security and knowing where to start are a significant challenge for many
organisations.
This document presents requirements for mitigating the most common Internet based
threats to cyber security. Firstly specific types of attack are identified and secondly the
most basic technical controls an organisation needs to have in place are described.
Deploying these controls will assist every UK organisation in defending against the most
common forms of cyber attack emanating from the internet using widely accessible tools
which require little skill from the attackers. Organisations implementing these controls can
benefit by gaining confidence that basic technical security measures are in place and that
important steps are being taken to protect its information and the information of its
customers.
The document was developed in collaboration with industry partners, including the
Information Security Forum (ISF), the Information Assurance for Small and Medium
Enterprises Consortium (IASME) and the British Standards Institution (BSI), and is
endorsed by Government. The technical controls within this document focus on five
essential mitigations within the context of the 10 Steps to Cyber Security. They reflect
those covered in well-established and more extensive cyber standards, such as the
ISO/IEC 27000 series, the ISFs Standard of Good Practice for Information Security and
the IASME Standard.

Who should use this document?

The control themes set out in this document are relevant to organisations of all sizes.
Large organisations would already be expected to have some knowledge or experience of
Cyber security. However, like smaller companies, many still have limited capability to
implement the full range of controls necessary to achieve robust cyber protection.
Small organisations (including single employee businesses), and even some mediumsized organisations, may need to obtain further guidance and support to ensure the
technical controls presented in these requirements can be implemented adequately.
Further details can be found on page 13 of this document.

What can these requirements help an organisation protect?

An organisations exposed technology to common cyber attacks will typically include
computers that are capable of connecting to the internet, including desktop PCs, laptops,
tablets and smartphones, and internet connected servers including email, web and
application servers.

Understanding and using this requirements document

Of the basic but successful cyber attacks against UK businesses and citizens of which
Government has detailed knowledge, the large majority would have been mitigated by full
implementation of the controls under the following, selected categories:
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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Boundary firewalls and internet gateways

Secure configuration
Access control
Malware protection
Patch management

To implement these requirements, organisations will need to determine the technology in

scope, review each of the five categories and apply each control specified. Where a
particular control cannot be implemented for a sound business reason (e.g. is not practical
or possible) alternative controls should be identified and implemented.

Figure 1: Scope of the requirements for basic technical protection

Many organisations allow employees to use their own computers for business
purposes, often referred to as Bring Your Own Device (BYOD). As a result, such
computers that handle sensitive information are in scope of this document.

Note
This document does not cover supporting detective and recovery controls or the
management of information risk. Further guidance on comprehensive approaches to
cyber security can be found in the standards referenced in Annex A.
Organisations wishing to demonstrate a level of assurance by implementing these
requirements can do so using the Cyber Essentials Assurance Framework document

Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

Threats Requiring Mitigation

By implementing Cyber Essentials, organisations are mitigating against the following
common types of cyber attack::
1. Phishing: malware infection through users clicking on malicious e-mail attachments
or website links.
2. Hacking: exploitation of known vulnerabilities in Internet connected servers and
devices using widely available tools and techniques.

Controls required for basic technical cyber protection

To mitigate the threats identified above, Cyber Essentials requires implementation of the
following controls.

1. Boundary firewalls and internet gateways

Objectives
Information, applications and computers within the organisations
internal networks should be protected against unauthorised access
and disclosure from the internet, using boundary firewalls, internet
gateways or equivalent network devices.

Introduction
Without a correctly configured boundary firewall, internet gateway or equivalent network
device, between the organisations network of computers and the internet, cyber attackers
can often gain access to these computers with ease and access the information they
contain.
A boundary firewall can protect against commodity cyber threats that is, attacks based
on capabilities and techniques that are freely available on the internet by restricting
inbound and outbound network traffic to authorised connections. Such restrictions are
achieved by applying configuration settings known as firewall rules.
Basic technical cyber protection for boundary firewalls and internet gateways
One or more firewalls (or equivalent network device) should be installed on the boundary
of the organisations internal network(s). As a minimum:
1. The default administrative password for any firewall (or equivalent network device)
should be changed to an alternative, strong password.
2. Each rule that allows network traffic to pass through the firewall (e.g. each service
on a computer that is accessible through the boundary firewall) should be subject to
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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

approval by an authorised individual and documented (including an explanation of

business need).
3. Unapproved services, or services that are typically vulnerable to attack (such as
Server Message Block (SMB), NetBIOS, tftp, RPC, rlogin, rsh or rexec), should be
disabled (blocked) at the boundary firewall by default.
4. Firewall rules that are no longer required (e.g. because a service is no longer
required) should be removed or disabled in a timely manner.
5. The administrative interface used to manage boundary firewall configuration should
not be accessible from the internet.
A strong password is typically one that: comprises a minimum number of characters
in length (e.g. eight characters); differs from the associated username; contains no
more than two identical characters in a row; is not a dictionary word; includes a
mixture of numeric and alpha characters; has not been reused within a
predetermined period of time (e.g. six months); and has not been used for another
account.

Alternative controls
In situations where the administrative interface needs to be accessible from the internet
(e.g. because it is supported by a remote administrator or external service provider) the
interface should be protected by additional security arrangements, which include using a
strong password, encrypting the connection (e.g. using SSL), restricting access to a limited
number of authorised individuals and only enabling the administrative interface for the
period it is required.

Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

2. Secure configuration
Objectives
Computers and network devices should be configured to reduce the level of inherent
vulnerabilities and provide only the services required to fulfil their role.

Introduction
Computers and network devices cannot be considered secure upon default installation. A
standard, out-of-the-box configuration can often include an administrative account with a
predetermined, publicly known default password, one or more unnecessary user accounts
enabled (sometimes with special access privileges) and pre-installed but unnecessary
applications (or services).
Default installations of computers and network devices can provide cyber attackers with a
variety of opportunities to gain unauthorised access to an organisations sensitive
information, often with ease. By applying some simple security controls when installing
computers and network devices (a technique typically referred to as system hardening),
inherent weaknesses can be minimised, providing increased protection against commodity
cyber attacks.
Basic technical cyber protection for secure configuration
Computers and network devices (including wireless access points) should be securely
configured. As a minimum:
1. Unnecessary user accounts (e.g. Guest accounts and unnecessary administrative
accounts) should be removed or disabled.
2. Any default password for a user account should be changed to an alternative,
strong password.
3. Unnecessary software (including application, system utilities and network services)
should be removed or disabled.
4. The auto-run feature should be disabled (to prevent software programs running
automatically when removable storage media is connected to a computer or when
network folders are accessed).
5. A personal firewall (or equivalent) should be enabled on desktop PCs and laptops,
and configured to disable (block) unapproved connections by default.

A personal firewall (sometimes referred to as a host-based firewall) is software that is

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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

typically installed on a computer (often as part of the operating system) to restrict

inbound and outbound network connections to and from authorised applications,
such as a web browser or email.

Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

3. User access control

Objectives
User accounts, particularly those with special access privileges (e.g. administrative
accounts) should be assigned only to authorised individuals, managed effectively and
provide the minimum level of access to applications, computers and networks.

Introduction
User accounts with special access privileges (e.g. administrative accounts) typically have
the greatest level of access to information, applications and computers. When privileged
accounts are compromised their level of access can be exploited resulting in large scale
corruption of information, affected business processes and unauthorised access to other
computers across an organisation.
To protect against misuse of special access privileges, the principle of least privilege
should be applied to user accounts by limiting the privileges granted and restricting
access.
Basic technical cyber protection for secure configuration
User accounts should be managed through robust access control. As a minimum:
1. All user account creation should be subject to a provisioning and approval process.
2. Special access privileges should be restricted to a limited number of authorised
individuals.
3. Details about special access privileges (e.g. the individual and purpose) should be
documented, kept in a secure location and reviewed on a regular basis (e.g.
quarterly).
4. Administrative accounts should only be used to perform legitimate administrative
activities, and should not be granted access to email or the internet.
5. Administrative accounts should be configured to require a password change on a
regular basis (e.g. at least every 60 days).
6. Each user should authenticate using a unique username and strong password
before being granted access to applications, computers and network devices.
7. User accounts and special access privileges should be removed or disabled when
no longer required (e.g. when an individual changes role or leaves the organisation)
or after a pre-defined period of inactivity (e.g. 3 months).

Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

4. Malware protection
Objectives
Computers that are exposed to the internet
should be protected against malware infection
through the use of malware protection
software.

Malware, such as computer viruses, worms and spyware, is software that has been
written and distributed deliberately to perform unauthorised functions on one or more
computers.

Introduction
Computers are often vulnerable to malicious software, particularly those that are exposed
to the internet (e.g. desktop PCs, laptops and mobile devices, where available). When
available, dedicated software is required that will monitor for, detect and disable malware.
Computers can be infected with malware through various means often involving a user
who opens an affected email, browses a compromised website or opens an unknown file
on a removable storage media.
Basic technical cyber protection for malware
The organisation should implement robust malware protection on exposed computers. As
a minimum:
1. Malware protection software should be installed on all computers that are
connected to or capable of connecting to the internet.
2. Malware protection software (including program code and malware signature files)
should be kept up-to-date (e.g. at least daily, either by configuring it to update
automatically or through the use of centrally managed deployment).
3. Malware protection software should be configured to scan files automatically upon
access (including when downloading and opening files, accessing files on
removable storage media or a network folder) and scan web pages when being
accessed (via a web browser).
4. Malware protection software should be configured to perform regular scans of all
files (e.g. daily).
5. Malware protection software should prevent connections to malicious websites on
the internet (e.g. by using website blacklisting).
The scope of malware protection in this document covers desktop PCs, laptops and
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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

servers that have access to or are accessible from the internet. Other computers
used in the organisation, while out of scope are likely to need protection against
malware as will some forms of tablets and smartphones.
Website blacklisting is a technique used to help prevent web browsers connecting to
unauthorised websites. The blacklist effectively contains a list of malicious or
suspicious websites that is checked each time the web browser attempts a
connection.

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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

5. Patch management
Objectives
Software running on computers and network devices should be kept up-to-date and
have the latest security patches installed.

Introduction
Any computer and network device that runs software can contain weaknesses or flaws,
typically referred to as technical vulnerabilities. Vulnerabilities are common in many types
of popular software, are frequently being discovered (e.g. daily), and once known can
quickly be deliberately misused (exploited) by malicious individuals or groups to attack an
organisations computers and networks.
Vendors of software will typically try to provide fixes for identified vulnerabilities as soon as
possible, in the form of software updates known as patches, and release them to their
customers (sometimes using a formal release schedule such as weekly). To help avoid
becoming a victim of cyber attacks that exploit software vulnerabilities, an organisation
needs to manage patches and the update of software effectively.
Basic technical cyber protection for patch management
Software should be kept up-to-date. As a minimum:
1. Software running on computers and network devices that are connected to or
capable of connecting to the internet should be licensed and supported (by the
software vendor or supplier of the software) to ensure security patches for known
vulnerabilities are made available.
2. Updates to software (including operating system software and firmware) running on
computers and network devices that are connected to or capable of connecting to
the internet should be installed in a timely manner (e.g. within 30 days of release or
automatically when they become available from vendors).
3. Out-of-date software (i.e. software that is no longer supported) should be removed
from computer and network devices that are connected to or capable of connecting
to the internet.
4. All security patches for software running on computers and network devices that are
connected to or capable of connecting to the internet should be installed in a timely
manner (e.g. within 14 days of release or automatically when they become available
from vendors).

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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

Where to go for more information

The guidance provided in this document represents a small yet essential part of defending
against cyber threats. It does not present all of the security controls an organisation needs
to have in place to protect against a broad range of threats, particularly those that are
sophisticated threats (i.e. a threat with significant capability, funding and resource, typically
known as advanced persistent threats).
Responding to and managing the vast range of cyber threats that UK organisations
continue to face is a significant undertaking, involving the investment of people, money
and time. Regardless of their size, use of technology, the industry sector in which they
operate and their global presence, every organisation needs to implement a robust and
effective approach to cyber security.
To be successful, such an approach to cyber security requires direction to be set by
executive management, effective planning and decision making across the organisation
and a comprehensive programme of activities based on key principles for managing cyber
risk. These activities are covered in the supporting standards shown in the table below.
Ref

Supporting standards and guidance

ISO/IEC 27001:2013 Information technology Security techniques

Information security management systems Requirements
ISO/IEC 27002:2013 Information technology Security techniques
Code of practice for information security controls

Information Security Forum The Standard of Good Practice for

Information Security (2013)

The IASME Consortium The Standard for Information Assurance for

Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (2013)

HMG 10 Steps to Cyber Security

Further advice is available through the CESG Listed Advisor Scheme detailed at
www.cesg.gov.uk/servicecatalogue/CLAS/Pages/CLAS.aspx.
Details of where corresponding controls, covered in this document, reside in supporting
standards are presented in the following table.

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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

Standard

1. Boundary
Firewalls
and internet
Gateways

2. Secure
Configuration

3. Access
Control

4. Malware
Protection

5. Patch
Management

ISO/IEC
27001:2013
Information
technology
Security
techniques
Information
security
management
systems
Requirements

A.13.1
Network
Security
Management

A.12.1
Operational
Procedures
and
Responsibilities

A.9.2 User
Access
Management

A.12.2
Protection
from Malware

A.12.6 Technical
Vulnerability
Management

Information
Security Forum
The Standard
of Good
Practice for
Information
Security (2013)

CF9 Network
Management

CF7 System
Management

CF6 Access
Management

CF10 Threat
and
Vulnerability
Management

CF10 Threat and

Vulnerability
Management

The IASME
Consortium
The Standard
for Information
Assurance for
Small and
Medium Sized
Enterprises
(2013)

4.9 Malware
and
Technical
Intrusion

4.8 Access
Control

4.8 Access
Control

4.9 Malware
and
Technical
Intrusion

4.7 Operations
and Management

10 Steps to
Cyber Security

3 Network
Security

2 Secure
Configuration

4 Managing
User
Privileges

7 Malware
Prevention

2 Secure
Configuration

ISO/IEC
27002:2013
Information
technology
Security
techniques
Code of
practice for
information
security
controls

CF 9 Network
Management
CF14 Mobile
Device
Configuration

9 Removable
Media
Controls

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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

Annex A: Where these requirements are covered in other cyber

standards
Organisations wishing to understand or address how these requirements fit into a broader
cyber risk framework or obtain further information about different aspects of managing
cyber risk should consult the following standards.

ISO/IEC 27001/2

ISF SOGP

IASME

10 Steps

A.5 Information security

Policies

CF1 Security Policy and

Organisation

4.3 Policy and Compliance

1 Information risk
management regime

A.6 Organisation of
information security

CF1 Security Policy and

Organisation

4.1 Organisation

1 Information risk
management regime

A.7 Human resource

security

CF2 Human Resource

Security

4.5 People

5 User education and

awareness

A.8 Asset management

CF3 Asset Management

4.4 Assets

2 Secure configuration

A.9 Access Control

CF5 Customer Access

CF6 Access Management

4.8 Access control

4 Managing user privileges

A.10 Cryptography

CF8 Technical Security

Infrastructure

A.11 Physical and

environmental security

CF19 Physical and

Environmental Security

4.6 Physical and

environmental protection

A.12 Operations Security

CF10 Threat and

Vulnerability management
CF7 System Management
CF 9 Network Management
CF14 Mobile Device
Configuration

4.7 Operations and

management
4.8 Access Control
4.9 Malware and technical
intrusion
4.11 Backup and Restore
4.10 Monitoring

A.13 Communications
Security

CF9 Network Management

4.9 Malware and technical
CF15 Electronic
intrusion
Communications

A.14 System acquisition,

development and
maintenance

CF4 Business Applications

CF13 Desktop Applications
CF17 System Development 4.7 Operations and
Management
management
CF18 Systems
Development Lifecycle

A.15 Supplier relationships

CF16 External Supplier

Management

A.16 Information security

incident management

CF11 Incident Management 4.12 Incident Management 6 Incident management

A.17 Information security

aspects of business
continuity management

CF20 Business Continuity

2 Secure configuration
7 Malware prevention
8 Monitoring
9 Removable media
controls

3 Network security

4.7 Operations and

management

4.13 Disaster
Recovery/Business
Continuity

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Cyber Essentials Scheme: Requirements for basic technical protection from cyber attacks

A.18 Compliance

SR2 Compliance

4.3 Policy and Compliance

SG1 Security Governance

4.1 Organisation
Approach

1 Information risk
management regime

SG2 Security Governance

4.1 Organisation
Components

1 Information risk
management regime

SR1 Information Risk

Assessment

1 Information risk
management regime

4.2 Assessing the risk

4.7 Operations and

CF7 System Management Management
4.11 Backup and Restore
CF12 Local Environments

CF14 Mobile Computing

4.4 Assets

9 Removable media
controls
10 Home and mobile
working

4.10 Monitoring

8 Monitoring

SI1 Security Audit

SI2 Security Performance

16

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