The UK government announced on 3 November 2026 a 75% discount on its Cyber Essentials certification for micro, small and medium-sized businesses, meaning eligible firms could pay as little as £80 and no more than £125 plus VAT. The offer, covered by £2.4 million of funding, is first come, first served for businesses not certified in the last four years and runs until March 2027 or until funding runs out. The government estimates about 6,000 new businesses could benefit.

A separate grant of up to £7 million until March 2029 will fund first-time certification and tailored advisor support for eligible UK-based SME suppliers of organisations that have signed the Cyber Resilience Pledge, which the government says has more than 230 signatories. It estimates about 8,000 businesses could benefit from that funding.

The department also named 14 organisations joining as the second cohort of Software Security Ambassadors, including Thales, Capgemini and SANS, to promote secure software development and the Software Security Code of Practice. The measures follow Budget announcements including £70 million for a new vulnerability centre within the NCSC and £60 million for a national Cyber Shield.