Cyber security in Leeds

This guide lists 17 cyber security firms working in Leeds. Entries are added as Leeds Today confirms them, so the list grows over time.

Included: cyber security firms with an office in Leeds, evidenced work in the Leeds market, or a firm credibly serving Leeds from elsewhere (labelled with its home city). Listed A to Z; firms headquartered in Leeds are marked. Independently compiled. No company can pay to be added.

Cyber Essentials is a UK government-backed certification that shows an organisation has five basic security controls in place: firewalls, secure configuration, user access control, malware protection and security update management. The basic level is a self-assessment questionnaire checked by a qualified assessor from a certification body licensed by IASME. Cyber Essentials Plus uses the same controls but adds a technical audit, including vulnerability scans and tests on a sample of devices. Certificates last 12 months, and some government contracts require one.

A managed service provider, often called an MSP, runs part or all of a company's IT for a regular fee under a contract. That usually includes a helpdesk, monitoring and updating computers and servers, managing Microsoft 365 or Google accounts, backups and network support, with agreed response times. Many MSPs also sell security services such as endpoint protection, email filtering and help with Cyber Essentials. Some work alongside an in-house IT team, often called co-managed support, rather than replacing it.

A penetration test is an authorised, simulated attack on an organisation's systems, carried out by security testers to find weaknesses before criminals do. It can cover websites and applications, internal and external networks, cloud services or staff, through social engineering. The tester reports what they found, how serious each issue is and how to fix it. Tests are usually done once or twice a year, or after major changes. CREST and the NCSC CHECK scheme accredit testing firms.

IT support keeps systems running: fixing faults, setting up users and devices, applying updates and managing backups. Managed security focuses on threats. The provider monitors a client's systems, often around the clock from a security operations centre, investigates alerts and responds to attacks, a service often sold as managed detection and response. Many IT support firms include basic security tools in their contracts, while specialist security firms add monitoring, testing and incident response.

Managed IT support is usually priced per user or per device each month, with projects such as cloud migrations or new hardware charged separately. Prices depend on what is included, such as on-site visits, out of hours cover, security tools and Microsoft licences, so compare quotes on the same basis and check response times, contract length and notice period. Cyber Essentials certification has a separate fee, set by IASME by organisation size, from £320 plus VAT for up to 9 employees to £600 plus VAT for 250 or more.

Independent means the firm is headquartered in Leeds or the wider region and is not part of a national group. National means a UK firm with offices in several cities, including Leeds, and its head office elsewhere. International means the Leeds office belongs to a firm with offices in other countries. The label describes how the firm is organised, not its size or quality. Each entry also states the Leeds address the firm gives on its own website or at Companies House.