How does your business measure up against the Essential Eight?
The ASD Essential Eight is the Australian Government’s baseline for stopping the most common cyber attacks. Our free two-page checklist turns it into 28 plain-English yes or no questions, so you can see your gaps in about ten minutes.
- Free PDF download
- Takes about 10 minutes
- Written for business owners
- 5.0 on Google
What the checklist covers
Patching
Are your applications and operating systems updated fast enough to close known security holes?
Multi-factor authentication
Is MFA protecting email, Microsoft 365, remote access and the online portals your team uses?
Access and applications
Who has admin rights, which programs can run, and are Office macros and browsers locked down?
Backups
Are your backups separate, protected from deletion, and tested so you know you can recover?
Who it is for
- Business owners and managers who want to know where they stand without the jargon.
- Businesses filling in cyber insurance forms, which increasingly ask about Essential Eight controls.
- Teams checking up on their current IT provider, to see whether the basics are really in place.
- Practices with client data to protect, such as accountants, medical and dental clinics, law firms and real estate agencies.
Get your free checklist
Enter your details and you will go straight to the download.
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Want help closing the gaps?
Every Zectron managed IT client gets a security baseline aligned with the Essential Eight. If the checklist shows gaps, book a free IT Health Check and we will show you where the real risks are and how to fix them. Read our Essential Eight guide or learn about our cyber security services.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Essential Eight?
The Essential Eight is a set of eight mitigation strategies published by the Australian Signals Directorate to protect organisations against common cyber attacks. They cover patching, MFA, admin privileges, application control, Office macros, application hardening and backups.
Is the Essential Eight mandatory for small businesses?
It is mandatory for many government agencies, but not for most private businesses. It is still widely used as a benchmark, and cyber insurers and larger clients increasingly ask about it.
Is this checklist an official assessment?
No. It is a simplified self-check based on Maturity Level One to help you spot gaps and start a conversation. A proper assessment looks at evidence and configuration in detail.
Know where you stand in ten minutes
Free, plain English, and no obligation.