ISO27001 vs Cyber Essentials (Part 1/3): Why They’re Not the Same and Why That Matters More Than Ever

Written By Noel Bradford

Let’s Get Something Straight

Let’s cut through the buzzwords, shall we?

No, ISO27001 is not the same as Cyber Essentials. Nor is SOC 2. Not close. Not basically the same thing. Not even kissing cousins. They operate on different planes of existence, target different risks, and serve different audiences.

Still, we keep hearing phrases like “We’ve got ISO27001 so we don’t need Cyber Essentials,” or “SOC 2 covers everything, doesn’t it?” Or worse, “Cyber Essentials is for small businesses only.” They’re all wrong. And dangerously so.

Here’s your reality check and a deep dive into why every UK business, from a one-person consultancy to a 500-seat PLC, needs to understand what each framework actually does and doesn’t do.

Because getting this wrong doesn’t just leave you vulnerable. It leaves your clients exposed, your partners at risk, and your name one click away from the next data breach headline.

So let’s stop playing buzzword bingo and start facing facts.

The Core Difference: Scope and Intent

Let’s talk like grown-ups. Cyber Essentials is your lock. Your firewall. Your actual, working line of defence. ISO27001 is your spreadsheet about that lock. And SOC 2 is your quarterly slide deck explaining the spreadsheet to someone else who isn’t checking the door either.

Cyber Essentials stops threats. ISO27001 helps you plan to stop threats. SOC 2 helps you prove you once thought about threats.

All three can be valuable. But if you don’t start with Cyber Essentials level controls, then the rest is performance art. And attackers aren’t watching the show. They’re already in the dressing room.

Cyber Essentials is defensive. ISO27001 is strategic. SOC 2 is reputational. All have value but they’re not interchangeable. And one of them, Cyber Essentials, is so foundational it should be non-negotiable.

If you wouldn’t run your business without insurance, why would you run it without basic digital protection?

This is not optional. This is your minimum viable security posture. And if you’re skipping it because it’s too basic, then congratulations, you’re a headline waiting to happen.

Cyber Essentials Is Built for Everyone

Here’s the part too many get wrong. Cyber Essentials isn’t a lightweight starter pack for microbusinesses. It’s the security foundation for everyone.

From global conglomerates to three-person firms, the threats are the same and so are the attack vectors. Phishing. Credential stuffing. Outdated patches. Unsecured services. Unfiltered malware. It’s not complicated. It’s relentless.

You think hackers care about your ISO badge when your RDP is wide open?

You think a SOC 2 attestation matters to ransomware operators when they find an unpatched Exchange server?

No. They care about one thing: can they get in?

Cyber Essentials is built to answer that question before they ask it. It gives you friction. It gives you visibility. It gives you accountability. It’s not a silver bullet. But it’s a hell of a lot better than governance theatre.

If you’re not doing Cyber Essentials or something equivalent and doing it properly, you’re not secure. You’re just lucky. And luck runs out.

Coming Up Next: Big Names, Big Certs, Big Breaches

You want proof? Fine. We’ll give it to you. In Part 2, we’ll walk through how some of the biggest brands in the UK, names you recognise, institutions you trust, got it wrong.

They had ISO27001. They had SOC 2. They had compliance teams. And they still got breached.

Why?

Because compliance isn’t protection. Because paperwork doesn’t patch servers. Because certifications don’t block phishing emails.

And because too many people still treat Cyber Essentials like an afterthought instead of the frontline defence it actually is.

Stay tuned. This is about to get specific.

Final Thought

Cyber Essentials isn’t just for the SMEs trying to get on a public sector supplier list. It’s for everyone. It’s for the CIO who assumes the audit report reflects reality. It’s for the MSP who thinks good intentions are enough. It’s for the procurement officer who ticks the ISO box without asking a single question about actual endpoint protection.

If you’re holding ISO27001 or SOC 2 and not requiring Cyber Essentials or an equivalent baseline in your supply chain, you are not doing your job.

You are signing off on risk. You are authorising exposure. You are saying compliant when you should be asking are we protected?

And if you don’t course correct? Don’t worry. The headlines will.

To be continued in Part 2: Big Names, Big Certs, Big Breaches.

Noel Bradford

Noel Bradford – Head of Technology at Equate Group, Professional Bullshit Detector, and Full-Time IT Cynic

As Head of Technology at Equate Group, my job description is technically “keeping the lights on,” but in reality, it’s more like “stopping people from setting their own house on fire.” With over 40 years in tech, I’ve seen every IT horror story imaginable—most of them self-inflicted by people who think cybersecurity is just installing antivirus and praying to Saint Norton.

I specialise in cybersecurity for UK businesses, which usually means explaining the difference between ‘MFA’ and ‘WTF’ to directors who still write their passwords on Post-it notes. On Tuesdays, I also help further education colleges navigate Cyber Essentials certification, a process so unnecessarily painful it makes root canal surgery look fun.

My natural habitat? Server rooms held together with zip ties and misplaced optimism, where every cable run is a “temporary fix” from 2012. My mortal enemies? Unmanaged switches, backups that only exist in someone’s imagination, and users who think clicking “Enable Macros” is just fine because it makes the spreadsheet work.

I’m blunt, sarcastic, and genuinely allergic to bullshit. If you want gentle hand-holding and reassuring corporate waffle, you’re in the wrong place. If you want someone who’ll fix your IT, tell you exactly why it broke, and throw in some unsolicited life advice, I’m your man.

Technology isn’t hard. People make it hard. And they make me drink.

https://noelbradford.com
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