Thinking from the front line.
Perspectives on penetration testing, cloud security, accreditation, Cyber Essentials and secure engineering.
Penetration Testing vs Vulnerability Scanning: What's the Difference?
Penetration testing or a vulnerability scan? Understand what each finds, what compliance actually requires, and why you almost always need both, from a CREST and Cyber Scheme qualified tester.
Becoming a Layer 7 Partner: A Guide for MSPs
How MSPs add penetration testing, Cyber Essentials and managed security without building in-house. The build-vs-partner decision, and how to partner with Layer 7.
How to Pass a Cyber Essentials Plus Audit: 2026 Checklist
How to prepare for a Cyber Essentials Plus audit in 2026: a control-by-control checklist, the top reasons firms fail, and how to pass first time.
How Much Does Cyber Essentials Plus Cost? (2026 UK Price Guide)
How much does Cyber Essentials Plus cost in 2026? See UK pricing by device count, what drives the fee, and how to certify from £900. Get a quote.
Cyber Essentials vs Cyber Essentials Plus: Which Do You Need?
Cyber Essentials or Plus? Compare the audit, cost and which level your contracts actually require, by sector, with an IASME Certification Body.
What micro-businesses actually need from cybersecurity support
A new open-access study finds the problem isn't too little cybersecurity advice, it's too little usable advice. Layer 7's Joe Cockcroft is among the authors.
Cyber Essentials changes 2026: Danzell, mandatory MFA and cloud scope
What changed in the 2026 Cyber Essentials update (v3.3 / Danzell): mandatory MFA, a new cloud-service definition and whole-scope patching, and how to stay certified.
Why Cyber Essentials Plus Matters More Than Ever in 2026
With 43% of UK businesses hit by a breach last year and the scheme updating in April 2026, hands-on certification is becoming a baseline expectation. Here is what it is, what is changing, and what to do about it.