Why the 14-Day Patching Window Is No Longer Enough, And What UK Businesses Should Do Instead Whoever wrote the Cyber Essentials 14-day patching requirement wrote it for a different threat landscape. In 2018 it made sense. The average time between a vulnerability being disclosed and attackers actively exploiting it was 756 days. Businesses had overContinue reading “Why the 14-Day Patching Window Is No Longer Enough, And What UK Businesses Should Do Instead”
Author Archives: Michael Wiercioch
Zero Touch Deployment for Windows and Mac: A Practical UK Business Guide
Zero Touch Deployment for Windows and Mac: A Practical UK Business Guide A new employee starts on Monday. They are based in Glasgow. Your IT team is in London. The MacBook and the Windows laptop are being shipped directly from the supplier. By Tuesday morning both devices should be fully configured, enrolled, compliant and readyContinue reading “Zero Touch Deployment for Windows and Mac: A Practical UK Business Guide”
Managing the macOS Share Menu for NCSC Cyber Essentials
Managing the macOS Share Menu for NCSC Cyber Essentials Transitioning from legacy Restrictions to Blueprints If you’re currently working through the UK NCSC Cyber Security Essentials guidance for your fleet, there’s a good chance you’ve been looking at how to restrict the macOS context menu. Specifically, we’re talking about managing what appears when a userContinue reading “Managing the macOS Share Menu for NCSC Cyber Essentials”
Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune for Apple Devices: An Honest Business Guide 2026
Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune for Apple Devices: An Honest Business Guide 2026 Every IT manager making an Apple MDM decision in 2026 hits the same question at some point: Jamf Pro or Microsoft Intune?The question sounds straightforward. The answer is not because both platforms are genuinely good, both have real limitations and the rightContinue reading “Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune for Apple Devices: An Honest Business Guide 2026”
Cyber Essentials vs Cyber Essentials Plus: Which Level Does Your Business Actually Need?
Cyber Essentials vs Cyber Essentials Plus: Which Level Does Your Business Actually Need? You have decided your business needs Cyber Essentials certification. You have read about the five controls, you understand the assessment process and you are ready to get started. Then you notice there are two levels, Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus andContinue reading “Cyber Essentials vs Cyber Essentials Plus: Which Level Does Your Business Actually Need?”
Cyber Essentials Checklist for UK Businesses: A Practical Guide
Cyber Essentials Checklist for UK Businesses: A Practical Guide Most businesses that fail their Cyber Essentials assessment do not fail because their security is terrible. They fail because they never checked exactly what theassessment required before submitting. The industry average first-time pass rate for Cyber Essentials is around 60%. With proper preparation that figure climbsContinue reading “Cyber Essentials Checklist for UK Businesses: A Practical Guide”
Cyber Insurance for UK Businesses: What It Is, What It Costs and What Insurers Actually Require
Cyber Insurance for UK Businesses: What It Is, What It Costs and What Insurers Actually Require Your business gets hit by ransomware on a Tuesday morning. Ransomware has encrypted every file on your server. Your systems are down, your team cannot work or your clients are calling. You need a forensics firm, need a lawyerContinue reading “Cyber Insurance for UK Businesses: What It Is, What It Costs and What Insurers Actually Require”
What is Okta and Why Does Your Business Need It?
What is Okta and Why Does Your Business Need It? Onboarding new staff manually is one of the most time-consuming and error-prone processes in a growing business. Before a new employee can do any work, someone has to create their email account, add them to Slack, grant them access to your project management tool, inviteContinue reading “What is Okta and Why Does Your Business Need It?”
The Perfect Employee Onboarding Process
The Perfect Employee Onboarding Process: Getting New Hires Productive From Day One Picture this. It is Monday morning. Your new software engineer starts today. She is talented, expensive to hire and genuinely excited about the role. Her manager has been talking her up for weeks. She is remote, based in Porto, joining a London team,Continue reading “The Perfect Employee Onboarding Process”
Bringing Mac into Your Business: How Windows and Mac Work Together
Bringing Mac into Your Business: How Windows and Mac Work Together For years, the assumption in business IT was straightforward: you standardise on Windows, you manage everything through Active Directory, and anything that does not fit gets left at the door. That assumption no longer holds. Across the UK, businesses are running Macs and WindowsContinue reading “Bringing Mac into Your Business: How Windows and Mac Work Together”