London, UK - Konica Minolta’s sound technical security controls that defend it against cyber threats have secured accreditation to the Cyber Essentials Plus Scheme.

In the last year, online crime cost UK business more than £1bn and caused lengthy periods of disruption, according to Get Safe Online and Action Fraud, the UK’s national fraud and cyber crime reporting centre.

The government-backed Cyber Essentials Plus is a cyber security certification scheme that provides a mechanism for organisations such as Konica Minolta to demonstrate to customers, investors, insurers and others that they have taken essential precautions to secure against the majority of cyber risks. Backed by major industry players including BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin and Barclays, Konica Minolta joins more than 1,200 organisations that have adopted it to date.

Cyber Essentials Plus addresses five key controls that, when implemented correctly, can prevent around 80% of cyber attacks. It helps prevent a virus or piece of malware losing company and client data or disrupting a business’ cashflow. It protects an organisation against common cyber threats, shows a firm’s customers that it takes this issue seriously and enables a business to bid for government contracts.

As a result, it drives business efficiency, saves money and improves productivity by streamlining processes. Achieving certification also helps address other compliance requirements such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation.

Salman Khan, Head of Audit and Compliance for Konica Minolta in the UK, said: “This accreditation is a crucial part of our business transformation as we aim to become the UK’s leading one-stop-shop provider of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) solutions, Managed Print, Document Services and Production Print technologies, and Business Process Optimisation and Managed IT Services. The Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation also supports our ability to tender for new business and helps us improve our brand reputation within the Enterprise and Strategic Corporate Accounts (SCA) market place.”