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Cyber Essentials for Fintech & Digital Banking in Aberdeen
Achieve Cyber Essentials certification and strengthen the security foundations your regulators and customers expect.
Fintech Expertise
We understand the specific cybersecurity challenges and compliance requirements facing fintech businesses in London.
Tailored Security Packages
Bespoke Cyber Essentials certification packages designed specifically for the fintech sector, aligned with your compliance needs.
London Based
Centrally located in the City of London, providing hands-on certification support and on-site remediation for fintech firms.
What we do
A complete Cyber Essentials certification service — from initial gap analysis through to successful certification and ongoing annual recertification.
Cyber Essentials Basic
Self-assessment certification covering the 5 core security controls. Suitable for most businesses and a requirement for many government contracts. We guide you through every question and ensure you pass first time.
Cyber Essentials Plus
Advanced certification with hands-on technical auditing, vulnerability scanning and penetration testing by certified assessors. The highest level of Cyber Essentials assurance for your organisation and supply chain.
Gap Analysis
A thorough pre-assessment review of your current security posture against all five Cyber Essentials controls. We identify exactly what needs fixing before you apply — eliminating surprises and failed attempts.
Remediation Support
Hands-on technical work to fix firewalls, patching gaps, access controls and insecure configurations. We don't just tell you what's wrong — we fix it, ensuring every control meets the certification standard.
Staff Training
Cybersecurity awareness training for your employees covering phishing, password hygiene, social engineering and safe working practices. Reducing human-error risks is essential for both certification and real-world security.
Annual Recertification
Cyber Essentials certification must be renewed every 12 months. We manage the entire recertification process, adapting to evolving requirements and ensuring continuous compliance year after year.
For fintech companies, Cyber Essentials certification is more than a badge — it demonstrates the baseline security controls that the FCA expects and enterprise customers require. It also reduces your cyber insurance premiums and strengthens your risk profile.
Cloudswitched guides fintech companies through Cyber Essentials certification with a deep understanding of financial services security requirements. We align the certification process with your existing FCA compliance obligations to maximise efficiency.
Fintech in Aberdeen
Running a Fintech business in Aberdeen places you within a thriving city. Aberdeen is Europe's energy capital, with its economy historically driven by North Sea oil and gas operations. The city is transitioning towards renewable energy, with major investment in offshore wind and hydrogen technologies. With a business community spanning oil and gas, renewable energy, subsea engineering, professional services, maritime, life sciences, hospitality, Fintech firms benefit from a diverse professional ecosystem and reliable demand for their services.
Why Fintech Businesses Choose Aberdeen
Fintech businesses choose Aberdeen for its combination of commercial opportunity and accessibility. Getting to and from Aberdeen is straightforward: 7 hours by train from London King's Cross, or 1 hour 25 minutes by flight from London Heathrow, Aberdeen Airport provides domestic and international services. The city's reputation and amenities make it an attractive base for Fintech & Digital Banking firms.
Local Economy
The local economy of Aberdeen encompasses oil and gas, renewable energy, subsea engineering, professional services, maritime, life sciences, hospitality, creating a diversified commercial environment. Fintech & Digital Banking businesses contribute to this economic mix and benefit from the professional services infrastructure that supports the wider business community.
Our Cyber Essentials service for Fintech
Regulatory Alignment
We align Cyber Essentials controls with your existing FCA operational resilience and PCI DSS requirements, avoiding duplicate work.
Cloud Infrastructure Coverage
Expert scoping and certification of cloud-hosted fintech platforms across AWS, Azure, and GCP environments.
Accelerated Certification
Streamlined process that gets you certified in weeks, not months, with pre-assessment checks to ensure first-time success.
Insurance & Procurement Benefits
Certification that reduces cyber insurance premiums and unlocks procurement opportunities with enterprise and government clients.
Fintech businesses turn to us when
Their current IT provider doesn't understand FCA regulatory requirements for operational resilience
They've failed a PCI DSS audit and need urgent remediation before their next assessment
Transaction processing latency is causing payment failures during peak trading periods
A security incident exposed customer financial data and they need to overhaul their security posture
They're struggling to maintain Open Banking API compliance as regulations evolve
Their fraud detection systems are too slow to catch transactions in real time
They need to demonstrate operational resilience to the FCA with documented DR procedures
Scaling their payment platform to handle 10x transaction volumes is beyond their current team
They're launching a new financial product and need compliant infrastructure from day one
Our approach
A proven four-stage process that takes you from initial assessment to certified status — with zero failed attempts.
1
Gap Analysis
We audit your current IT environment against all five Cyber Essentials controls — firewalls, secure configuration, access control, malware protection and patch management — identifying every gap that needs addressing.
2
Remediation
Our engineers fix every issue identified in the gap analysis. From firewall rules and patching schedules to user access policies and endpoint protection — we bring your entire environment up to certification standard.
3
Pre-Assessment
Before you submit, we run a full internal pre-assessment to verify every control passes. For Cyber Essentials Plus, this includes vulnerability scanning and testing to mirror the actual audit process.
4
Certification
We guide you through the IASME assessment submission, handle assessor queries, and support you through the entire certification process. Our 100% pass rate speaks for itself.
The 5 core security controls
Cyber Essentials is built around five fundamental technical controls. We ensure your organisation meets every one of them.
Firewalls & Internet Gateways
Your first line of defence. Boundary firewalls and internet gateways must be properly configured to control inbound and outbound traffic, with default passwords changed and unnecessary services disabled.
Secure Configuration
All devices must be configured securely — removing unnecessary software, changing default settings, disabling unused accounts and ensuring only essential services are running on each system.
User Access Control
User accounts must follow the principle of least privilege — only granting the access needed for each role, with admin rights tightly restricted and multi-factor authentication enforced where possible.
Malware Protection
Anti-malware software must be installed on all in-scope devices, kept up to date and configured for real-time scanning. This protects against viruses, ransomware, spyware and other malicious software.
Patch Management
All software and firmware must be kept up to date with security patches applied within 14 days of release. Unsupported software that no longer receives updates must be removed or isolated.
Why choose Cloudswitched for fintech Cyber Essentials?
Deep experience certifying FCA-regulated financial services companies
Understanding of how Cyber Essentials maps to PCI DSS and FCA requirements
Pre-assessment gap analysis to prevent certification delays
Fixed-fee pricing with no hidden charges
Annual recertification support and ongoing security advisory included
Certification Levels
Two levels of certification to match your requirements. Both cover the same 5 core controls — the difference is how they're verified.
Cyber Essentials
Self-assessment certification for most businesses
Basic Level
- Self-assessment questionnaire
- Covers all 5 core controls
- Verified by certification body
- Meets most government contract requirements
- Valid for 12 months
- Includes cyber liability insurance
- No hands-on technical testing
- No vulnerability scanning
Recommended
Cyber Essentials Plus
Hands-on audit for higher assurance
Advanced Level
- Everything in Cyber Essentials Basic
- Hands-on technical audit by assessor
- External vulnerability scanning
- Internal configuration testing
- Phishing simulation testing
- Required for sensitive government contracts
- Higher supply chain assurance
- Includes cyber liability insurance
Why Cloudswitched for Cyber Essentials?
We combine deep technical expertise with a proven certification process to deliver Cyber Essentials with a 100% pass rate.
100% pass rate
Every single business we've guided through Cyber Essentials has achieved certification first time. Our methodical approach and internal pre-assessment process eliminates failed attempts entirely.
IT company, not just consultants
We don't just advise — we implement. As a full-service IT company, we fix the technical gaps ourselves: configuring firewalls, hardening systems, patching software and setting up access controls.
Both Basic and Plus
We deliver both Cyber Essentials Basic and the more rigorous Cyber Essentials Plus certification. For Plus, our engineers prepare your systems for hands-on vulnerability scanning and technical testing.
Full gap analysis first
Before any certification attempt, we run a comprehensive gap analysis against all five controls. You'll know exactly what needs fixing, how long it will take and what it will cost — no surprises.
Fixed-price packages
No hourly rates or unexpected invoices. Our Cyber Essentials packages are fixed-price, covering gap analysis, remediation, certification submission and assessor fees — everything included.
Annual recertification managed
We don't disappear after certification. We manage your annual renewal, adapting to evolving requirements and ensuring continuous compliance — so you never lose your certified status.
Staff training included
Cybersecurity awareness training for your team — covering phishing, passwords, social engineering and safe working practices. Because the biggest vulnerability in any organisation is human error.
Dedicated account manager
A single point of contact who knows your business, your systems and your certification status. No ticket queues, no call centres — just direct access to someone who understands your needs.
Government contract ready
We understand the specific requirements for MOD, NHS and local council contracts. Our certification process ensures you meet every criterion needed to bid on and win government work.
Technology Infrastructure for Fintech in Aberdeen
Technology is a critical enabler for Fintech firms in Aberdeen, supporting everything from client communications to data management. The city's digital infrastructure provides the connectivity Fintech & Digital Banking organisations need. Professional IT support ensures these businesses can focus on delivering excellent service to their clients.
About Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Europe's energy capital, with its economy historically driven by North Sea oil and gas operations that have attracted hundreds of international energy companies to the city. The Granite City is now pivoting towards renewable energy and hydrogen technology, positioning itself at the forefront of the UK's net zero transition. Aberdeen's two universities and a robust professional services sector support a highly skilled workforce with some of the highest average earnings outside London.
Key industries: oil and gas, renewable energy, subsea engineering, professional services, maritime, life sciences, hospitality
Getting here: 7 hours by train from London King's Cross, or 1 hour 25 minutes by flight from London Heathrow
City
Aberdeen
Near Marischal College, Aberdeen Harbour, Old Aberdeen
Industry
Cyber Essentials Gap Analysis for Fintech
Cyber Essentials gap analysis Fintech
Identify gaps in your fintech cyber security posture with our Cyber Essentials gap analysis designed specifically for Fintech.
Location
Cyber Essentials Certification in Aberdeen
Cyber Essentials certification Aberdeen
Get Cyber Essentials certified in Aberdeen with expert guidance from our accredited consultants. We streamline the entire certification process for Aberdeen businesses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Got questions about Cyber Essentials certification for fintech businesses? We've answered the most common ones below.
Do you understand FCA operational resilience requirements?
Yes, we specialise in helping fintech firms meet FCA operational resilience standards. We implement redundant infrastructure, documented recovery procedures, regular testing, and the monitoring required to demonstrate compliance to regulators.
Can you help us maintain PCI DSS compliance?
We provide end-to-end PCI DSS compliance support including network segmentation, cardholder data environment hardening, quarterly vulnerability scanning, penetration testing, and audit preparation. We'll keep you compliant year-round, not just at assessment time.
How do you ensure high availability for payment processing?
We design active-active infrastructure with automatic failover, load balancing, database replication, and geographic redundancy. Our 24/7 monitoring detects degradation before it impacts transactions, maintaining the uptime your customers and regulators expect.
Can you secure our Open Banking API integrations?
We implement OAuth 2.0, mutual TLS, API gateway security, rate limiting, and real-time threat detection for your Open Banking APIs. We ensure your integrations meet PSD2 technical standards while protecting customer data in transit and at rest.
Get Cyber Essentials certified with confidence
Our 100% pass rate means you can trust us to get your fintech business certified first time. We handle the complexity so you don't have to.
Start your certification today
Whether you need Cyber Essentials Basic, Cyber Essentials Plus or help with annual recertification, our team is ready to guide your fintech business through every step of the process.
Submit your details and one of our friendly team members will be in touch with you shortly