A few weeks ago we wrote about our experience getting Cyber Essentials Plus certified. One of the things that came out of that process was an internal tool we built to automate the device auditing side of the certification. We've since turned that into a product called Cyber Check.
What is Cyber Check?
Cyber Check is a desktop app that automates Cyber Essentials Plus device auditing. Instead of spending an hour per device manually checking settings and taking screenshots, Cyber Check does the lot in seconds and tells you exactly where your machine passes, fails or needs attention.
Where it came from
When we went through our own Cyber Essentials Plus certification we quickly realised the most painful part was device auditing. Doing it manually is tedious and easy to get wrong. You miss things. You forget to screenshot something. And when you need to recertify in twelve months you get to do it all over again.
So we wrote a script to automate it. That worked well for us internally and after writing about our certification process we had several clients and peers asking if they could use it to help with their own certifications. That helped spur on the idea to turn it into a proper desktop app. Something anyone could run regardless of their technical background. Open the app, click a button and see your compliance status.
Core features
- Automated checks — Hit one button and get a full breakdown of your device's compliance status in seconds. Each check tells you whether you pass, fail or need to investigate further.
- Scheduled scans — Set it to run daily or weekly in the background. If something falls out of compliance you get a desktop notification. You shouldn't have to remember to run the tool. It should tell you when something needs attention.
- Menu bar / task bar app — Cyber Check lives in your menu bar on macOS or task bar on Windows. It stays out of the way until you need it or until it needs to tell you something.
- Audit history — Stores your previous scans so you can track compliance over time. See what changed between runs and spot configuration drift before it becomes a problem.
- PDF export and evidence packs — Generate PDF reports for your assessor or download a complete evidence pack as a ZIP. It's designed to be exactly what you hand to your CE+ assessor.
Additional features
- Device log — Part of Cyber Essentials is keeping a personal device log of all devices in scope along with their OS versions. Cyber Check lets you manage this in the app rather than a separate spreadsheet. Everything gets included in your evidence exports automatically.
- Security quiz — Inspired by the NCSC's Top Tips for Staff training, we built in a wee quiz that can be used to prove at least a basic level of cyber security upskilling within your business. Handy for onboarding or when your assessor asks about staff awareness.
Nice touches
- Loading state facts — While your scan runs (it only takes a few seconds) the app shows you random cyber security facts. A small thing but it makes the wait feel useful rather than empty.
- Cross-platform — Cyber Check works on both macOS and Windows. The experience is the same regardless of what your team uses.
- Privacy-first — Nothing ever leaves your device. No cloud sync, no telemetry. We never see any of your data. For a security tool that's exactly how it should work.
Pricing and availability
Cyber Check is available now at getcybercheck.com. Head over there to see current pricing, download the app and get started.
Need help with the bigger picture?
Cyber Check handles the device auditing side of Cyber Essentials but the certification process involves more than just device checks. There's documentation, policies, evidence gathering and remediation to think about too.
If your business needs technical leadership around security, compliance or any other aspect of your tech stack, that's exactly what our Fractional CTO service is for. We help startups and scaleups navigate these decisions without the overhead of a full-time hire.
Book a free 30-minute consultation to chat about it.
