The cyberattacks on Marks & Spencer, Co-op and Jaguar Land Rover in 2025 have shown just how disruptive a serious security breach can be. M&S had to suspend online orders, while the attack on Jaguar Land Rover disrupted production and affected businesses throughout its supply chain. The estimated impact on the UK economy was £1.9 billion.
These incidents made national headlines, but smaller businesses face cyber threats too. They can also suffer when a customer or supplier is attacked, potentially disrupting their own operations.
This is why we believe the Government’s new Cyber Resilience Pledge is an important initiative, and why nTrust has signed up.
Why we’ve signed the Cyber Resilience Pledge
The pledge encourages businesses to take greater responsibility for cyber security, with three main commitments:
- Make cyber security a board-level responsibility, supported by appropriate governance and training.
- Register for the National Cyber Security Centre’s Early Warning service to help identify potential threats.
- Improve supply-chain security by reviewing suppliers’ Cyber Essentials certification and encouraging better standards.
Much of this aligns with the work we already do at nTrust, but signing the pledge has also prompted us to look more closely at our own suppliers.
What we’ve discovered about our suppliers
Our initial review found that approximately 60% of our suppliers don’t currently hold Cyber Essentials certification.
That doesn’t necessarily mean their cyber security is poor, but it does highlight how difficult it can be to know whether the businesses you rely on have appropriate protections in place.
We’re now reviewing which suppliers we should encourage to achieve certification, based on the services they provide and the risks involved.
Why we’re encouraging other businesses to take action
As more organisations focus on the security of their supply chains, we expect Cyber Essentials certification to become increasingly important when choosing suppliers.
If a customer asks whether your business is Cyber Essentials certified, being able to say yes could make a real difference.
We’d encourage businesses to consider signing the pledge, although we recognise that its governance commitments won’t be appropriate for everyone.
You don’t have to sign up to improve your cyber security. Achieving Cyber Essentials certification is a practical starting point, helping protect your business while demonstrating to customers that you take security seriously.
We’ve signed the pledge because we believe that encouraging better cyber security practices across the businesses we work with benefits everyone.
Want to know more?
Read our Cyber Resilience Pledge guide to understand what’s involved and how nTrust can help.
You can also view nTrust’s signed Cyber Resilience Pledge declaration.
