Adhering to UK Cyber Essentials for Storage & Backup Infrastructure

During April, we met with Aimie Coole and Gary McIntosh, Field CTOs at Dell Technologies and long-time experts in cyber resilience. As we demoed StorageGuard and walked through the configuration compliance tab – showing out-of-the-box policies for NIS2, NCSC CAF, DORA, NIST, ISO, PCI DSS, CIS, and more – both Aimie and Gary pointed out how useful it would be to include the UK Cyber Essentials framework, given how widely it’s used.

Fast forward to June – we’re happy to add UK Cyber Essentials to the list of supported standards, and to thank Aimie and Gary for highlighting the gap.

What is UK Cyber Essentials?

UK Cyber Essentials is a government-backed certification scheme overseen by the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). It defines a baseline set of security controls to help organizations protect against common internet-based attacks.

How StorageGuard helps

StorageGuard automatically gathers configuration data from storage and backup systems and validates it against Cyber Essentials requirements. It provides a clear status view, along with detailed evidence showing how each requirement is (or isn’t) met.

You can generate evidence-backed compliance reports – including the underlying configuration data – and quickly prove compliance. When deviations are found, StorageGuard highlights them with actionable guidance, including recommended steps or commands, surfaced in the UI, via email, or integrated with ITSM workflows.

About Dell and StorageGuard

StorageGuard is part of the Dell Technologies Extended Technologies Complete (ETC) partnership program. It complements the Dell portfolio by providing security posture management – including configuration drift management – across both Dell and non-Dell storage and data protection systems.

Through this ETC program, Dell customers can more easily access and evaluate StorageGuard in the context of their existing environments.

Review a recent joint Dell + Core6 customer story – Dell and Core6 Strengthen Storage Security for Global Insurer

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is UK Cyber Essentials?

UK Cyber Essentials is a UK government-backed cybersecurity certification scheme that helps organizations protect against common cyber threats by implementing a baseline set of security controls. It is overseen by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

How does UK Cyber Essentials apply to storage and backup infrastructure?

While Cyber Essentials does not focus exclusively on storage and backup systems, many of its requirements relate to secure configuration, access control, vulnerability management, and system hardening. Storage and backup platforms play a critical role in meeting these requirements and supporting cyber resilience.

How can organizations assess Cyber Essentials compliance for storage systems?

Organizations can assess compliance by reviewing storage and backup configurations against Cyber Essentials requirements, identifying configuration gaps, documenting evidence, and implementing remediation actions where needed.

What evidence does StorageGuard provide for Cyber Essentials audits?

StorageGuard generates detailed compliance reports that include configuration settings, assessment results, identified deviations, and supporting evidence that can help simplify Cyber Essentials audit preparation and reporting.