Defence Cyber Certification in Telford
DCC Level 0 assessment and certification for defence suppliers in Telford, with the Cyber Essentials it requires, from one Certification Body.
DCC Level 0 assessment and certification for defence suppliers in Telford, with the Cyber Essentials it requires, from one Certification Body.
Defence Cyber Certification for Telford suppliers
Telford's strong manufacturing base includes suppliers to the defence sector. If you supply, or want to supply, the UK defence sector from Telford, Defence Cyber Certification is becoming essential: it is the MoD-backed scheme, delivered by IASME under Defence Standard 05-138, that evidences your cyber security to defence buyers. We help Telford businesses get certified without the usual runaround, working remotely first so location is no barrier.
The four DCC levels, and where Cyber Essentials fits
Defence Cyber Certification has four levels, set by the cyber risk profile of the contract. Level 0 is the supply chain floor for very low assessed risk and has just three controls: hold Cyber Essentials covering the contract scope, process personal data in compliance with UK GDPR, and build resilience into your systems. Level 1 jumps to 101 controls, Level 2 to 139 and Level 3 to 144, so the step from Level 0 to Level 1 is far larger than the numbering suggests. Your level is assigned by the MoD delivery team through the contract's Cyber Risk Profile rather than chosen by you. Crucially, every level requires Cyber Essentials, and Levels 2 and 3 require Cyber Essentials Plus as well. Cyber Essentials is the technical baseline for every level.
How Solusec helps
We are a Defence Cyber Certification Body appointed to assess and certify Level 0, and we are a Cyber Essentials Certification Body too, so we can certify the Cyber Essentials that Level 0 requires at the same time, with no handoffs. For Level 1 we provide scope reviews, gap analysis across the controls and evidence preparation. Level 2 and Level 3 assessments, which require Cyber Essentials Plus, we refer to a body appointed for those levels.
The defence supply chain in Telford
Telford sits alongside one of the MoD's principal logistics and equipment support sites, and its industrial estates hold a mix of vehicle engineering, fabrication, electronics and distribution firms that supply defence directly or through primes. This is our home patch: we are based a few miles away in Albrighton, so an on-site visit here costs you nothing in travel.
What Telford suppliers most often have to fix first
These are the blockers that come up repeatedly here. All three are worth checking before you start an application, because each one is a remediation project rather than a paperwork exercise.
- Warehouse and logistics systems running on unsupported platforms because the software is tied to specific hardware.
- Handheld scanners and terminals with shared logins and no patching route.
- Office estates where the five controls are mostly met but nothing has ever been documented.
None of these stops you certifying. All of them decide whether you certify in two weeks or two months, which is the difference that matters with the MoD's 31 December 2026 expectation in view.
Why this matters now
The Ministry of Defence has asked all industry partners to achieve DCC Level 0 by 31 December 2026. It is an ask rather than a contractual mandate: IASME, which runs the scheme, states that DCC is not currently mandatory, and holding it does not yet exempt you from the Supplier Assurance Questionnaire. The requirement that binds you contractually today is DEFCON 658 and the Cyber Security Model. Individual MoD contracts are already specifying a required DCC level, and you cannot bid above your certified level. Getting Level 0 and your Cyber Essentials in place now keeps you eligible and ahead of the rush.
What Level 0 looks like for a Telford supplier
Telford suppliers into defence logistics and vehicle support most often trip on the Cyber Essentials scope covering handheld and warehouse devices rather than on the office estate. Those devices are in scope if they touch contract data, and they are the part of the estate that has usually never been inventoried. We are fifteen minutes away, which makes walking the floor with you practical rather than a billable expedition.
Talk to us about DCC Level 0
Tell us your requirement and we will agree the work and the assessment route. We assess and certify DCC Level 0, and we can certify the Cyber Essentials it requires at the same time, so it is one provider with no handoffs.
Level 1 and above
Our scope is Level 0. We assess it and issue the certificate ourselves, together with the Cyber Essentials it requires. Level 1 is a different proposition: a hundred and one controls rather than three, and getting ready for it is a programme of work rather than an application.
Where a contract is profiled at Level 1 or above, we work with a trusted partner who specialises in that level. To be plain about the division of labour, we do not carry out the Level 1 preparation, we do not do the remediation that leads up to it, and we do not deliver the Level 1 assessment. Tell us what your contract actually requires and we will point you at the right people rather than take on work we are not the ones to do.
Why DCC matters more in Telford than in most towns
Telford has a defence manufacturing cluster of real substance, which is why Defence Cyber Certification is a live question here rather than a distant one. Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land builds military vehicles in the town and has invested over £20 million locally following an £860 million contract. Rheinmetall has since announced a UK large-calibre barrel production facility in Telford, expected to support more than 400 direct and indirect jobs, and Telford College has set up provision to train for those roles.
A cluster like that does not consist only of the primes. It is the machinists, fabricators, electronics assemblers, coating specialists and logistics firms around them, and it is those businesses that receive the certification requirement. If you supply into that chain from a unit on Hortonwood, Halesfield or Stafford Park, the certification question is coming to you, and the MoD has asked industry partners to hold Level 0 by 31 December 2026.
Everything we do in Telford
Seven services, one local practice. Whichever one brought you here, the others are run by the same people from the same place, twenty minutes away at Albrighton.
- Cyber security in Telford the overview of everything we do locally
- Cyber Essentials in Telford certification, assessed and issued by us
- Cyber Essentials Plus in Telford the audited step up, when a customer wants more
- IASME Cyber Assurance in Telford for when Cyber Essentials is not enough
- Penetration testing in Telford CREST-accredited testing of what you expose
- Ethical hacker in Telford the person, the credentials and the authorisation
- DCC Level 0 in Telford you are here
Common questions
Do Telford suppliers need Cyber Essentials for DCC?
Yes. every level requires Cyber Essentials, and Levels 2 and 3 require Cyber Essentials Plus as well. We can certify the Cyber Essentials you need alongside your DCC Level 0.
Which DCC level does a Telford supplier need?
It depends on the cyber risk profile assigned to the contract you are bidding for. You must be certified to that level or above. Tell us the contract and we will help you work it out.
Can you certify DCC Level 2 and 3 for Telford?
We assess and certify Level 0, and support Level 1. Levels 2 and 3 require Cyber Essentials Plus as well and are referred to a body appointed for those levels.
Related
Free, no obligation
Understand your exposure
An attacker’s first move is not an attack, it is a look. So we look first, and send you what we find, worst first.
- Services and ports you did not know were open
- Security misconfigurations on anything public facing
- Known vulnerabilities already indexed by engines like Shodan
- Company credentials sitting in known breach data
The only question is: do you know where and how to look?
We reply within one business day. Prefer to talk first? 01902 288763 or info@solusec.co.uk.
Nothing is touched on your systems. It is all public and already indexed, just scattered. We pull it together, which is what an attacker does first.
Ready for Defence Cyber Certification?
DCC Level 0 and the Cyber Essentials it requires, from one Certification Body.