Cyber Security + Practical AI for Business

Secure your business.
Put AI to work.

Practical cyber security and AI deployment for businesses that want better technology without unnecessary complexity.

We assess risk, strengthen systems and introduce secure AI automation that saves time and improves how your business works.

Independent consultancy based in Dorset · Working across the South West and the UK

CONTROLLED BOUNDARYIdentityMicrosoft 365DocumentsLine of businessAI & automation layerUnmanaged AI tools

Two disciplines, one engagement

Security and AI are the same conversation

Most organisations approach these separately, then discover the AI project is blocked on permissions, data access and identity. We handle both, which is usually the shortest route to a result that lasts.

01 / Cyber Security

Understand your risk, then reduce it

An evidenced view of where you actually stand, followed by the work to close the gaps that matter — prioritised by real exposure, not by checklist order.

  • Security assessment — structured review of your environment against how the business runs
  • Risk reduction — a prioritised plan, and the implementation to go with it
  • Microsoft 365 security — tenant configuration, sharing, mailbox and admin controls
  • Identity and access — MFA, Conditional Access, privileged roles and joiner/leaver process
  • Endpoint security — device compliance, patching, encryption and detection coverage
  • Security architecture — how systems connect, and where the trust boundaries sit
  • Resilience — backup, recovery and the ability to keep operating
  • Incident readiness — knowing who does what before you need to
Cyber security consultancy in detail

02 / AI Deployment

Put AI to work where it pays back

Fewer experiments, more delivered systems. We identify the tasks worth automating, build them properly, and make sure people actually use them.

  • AI readiness — whether your data, permissions and processes can support it yet
  • Worthwhile use cases — the small number of tasks where the return is clear
  • AI automation — repetitive work handled reliably, with exceptions escalated
  • Secure AI agents — scoped tool access, defined identity, human approval where it counts
  • Workflow integration — built into the systems people already use
  • Company knowledge — making internal information searchable under existing permissions
  • Governance — approved tools, data boundaries, logging and oversight
  • Staff adoption — training and guardrails, so it is used and trusted
AI consultancy and deployment in detail

Problems we solve

If any of these sound familiar, we can help

These are the reasons businesses contact us. None of them require you to know what the answer is before you get in touch.

  • “We are not sure how secure our systems really are.”

    A structured review of identity, endpoints, email and cloud configuration gives you an evidenced picture rather than an opinion — and a prioritised list of what to fix first.

  • “Microsoft 365 has grown organically and needs reviewing.”

    Tenants accumulate legacy settings, over-privileged accounts and forgotten sharing links. We review what is actually configured and correct it without breaking how people work.

  • “Staff are already using AI but there is no policy or control.”

    We establish what is being used, what data is going where, and put a workable approved-tools position in place — rather than an unenforceable ban.

  • “We know AI could save time but do not know where to start.”

    We look at your actual workflows and identify the handful of tasks where automation pays back quickly, then build one properly instead of piloting six.

  • “We want to automate repetitive work without creating security problems.”

    Automation is designed with scoped permissions, a named identity, human approval where it matters, and logging you can audit afterwards.

  • “Our IT provider handles support but not strategic security or AI.”

    That is a normal division of labour. We work alongside your provider, set the direction, and hand over documented changes they can maintain.

  • “We need independent technical advice before making a major decision.”

    We do not resell software or take vendor commission, so the advice you get reflects what the business needs — including when the answer is to do nothing.

Outcomes

What changes as a result

Engagements are judged on what is different afterwards — not on the length of the report.

Lower business risk

Known exposure reduced, and the remaining risk understood and accepted deliberately rather than by accident.

Stronger security posture

Identity, access, endpoints and email brought to a defensible standard that matches how your business operates.

Improved resilience

Backups and recovery that have been tested, with a realistic view of how long recovery would actually take.

Less repetitive work

Administrative tasks that consumed hours each week handled reliably, with people reviewing exceptions rather than every case.

Better use of company knowledge

Information already held in documents, email and systems made findable and usable, under the same permissions as the source data.

Safer AI adoption

Staff able to use AI productively within a clear, enforced boundary — instead of quietly using whatever they found.

Clearer technical decisions

Options set out in business terms, with the trade-offs and costs stated plainly so a decision can actually be made.

Measurable productivity gains

Value measured against the task it replaced — time saved, errors reduced, turnaround shortened — not against vendor claims.

Security + AI

AI deployment is also a security project

An AI system is only useful when it can reach real business information. That is precisely what makes it a security decision.

To do anything worthwhile, an assistant or agent may need access to:

  • Email
  • Documents
  • CRM records
  • Customer information
  • Financial information
  • Internal knowledge
  • Cloud applications

Once that access exists, the ordinary questions of information security apply in full. Permissions, identity, data access, governance, logging, privacy and security architecture have to be designed at the start — retrofitting them after a tool is embedded in daily work is considerably harder, and considerably more disruptive.

In practice this means deciding what the system may read before deciding what it should do, giving it its own identity rather than borrowing a person's, keeping a record of what it accessed, and making sure a human approves anything consequential.

Design order

We work up this stack, not down it. Identity, data access and logging are settled before anything is connected to live business systems.

Why work with us

A senior technical adviser, not a supplier

We are deliberately small. The value is in judgement and implementation, not in headcount or a product catalogue.

  • Senior technical experience

    You deal directly with the person doing the work. There is no account manager relaying questions to an engineer you never meet.

  • Independent advice

    We are not a reseller and take no vendor commission. Recommendations are made on merit, including where existing tooling is adequate.

  • Practical implementation

    We do the work, not just the report. Findings come with the configuration changes, documentation and handover to make them stick.

  • Security-first thinking

    Every AI or automation project is designed as a security project, because it will touch identity, data and permissions.

  • Commercial understanding

    Technical risk is presented in terms of cost, disruption and obligation, so it can be weighed against everything else on your list.

  • No unnecessary technology

    The cheapest secure option is usually configuring what you already own properly. We will tell you when that is the answer.

  • Clear explanations

    Findings are written for directors as well as engineers. If a recommendation cannot be explained plainly, it is not ready.

  • Works with your IT provider

    We complement an existing MSP or internal IT team rather than displacing them, and document changes so they can be supported.

More about how we work

Case studies

Recent work, anonymised

Client names are withheld as a matter of course. The situations, findings and changes are real in character and typical of the work we do.

Professional services · Approx. 90 staff, three offices

Untangling a Microsoft 365 tenant that grew without a plan

Problem
Nobody could say with confidence who had access to client files, or how many people held administrative rights.
Discovery
Fourteen accounts held Global Administrator rights, including two belonging to former employees and one shared account used by the IT provider.
Action
Reduced Global Administrator holders to two named accounts with just-in-time elevation, and moved the IT provider to a scoped delegated role.
Outcome
The firm can now answer client and insurer questions about access control with evidence rather than assumption.
Read the full case study

Distribution & logistics · Approx. 140 staff, one site plus depots

Discovering that backups existed but recovery did not

Problem
The board had been told the business was protected against ransomware. It had never been tested, and the assumption did not survive contact with a recovery exercise.
Discovery
The nightly backup completed successfully, but covered the ERP database only — not the application server, its configuration or its integrations.
Action
Rebuilt the backup design around immutable, credential-isolated storage that production domain accounts cannot reach or delete.
Outcome
Recovery of the core system has been performed end to end and timed, so the figure the board relies on is measured rather than assumed.
Read the full case study

Construction & property services · Approx. 220 staff

Automating supplier invoice handling without opening a data route

Problem
Invoice handling consumed most of a full-time role, and the finance team had begun pasting invoice PDFs into a free public AI tool to speed up data extraction.
Discovery
Roughly a quarter of finance staff were using consumer AI tools for work, including with supplier documents containing bank details and commercially sensitive pricing.
Action
Established an approved AI position: a business-tier tool with data-retention controls, tenant-bound identity, and a short written policy staff could actually follow.
Outcome
The finance team reviews exceptions rather than keying every invoice, and the time released has gone into supplier query resolution and month-end.
Read the full case study

All case studies

FAQ

Questions we are usually asked first

Do you replace our existing IT support provider?

No. We are a consultancy, not a support desk. Most of our clients keep their existing MSP or internal IT team for day-to-day support, and bring us in for security review, architecture decisions and AI deployment. We document what we change so your provider can maintain it.

How large does a business need to be to work with you?

We typically work with established organisations from around 20 to 500 staff — large enough to have real technology risk and repetitive processes worth automating, but without a dedicated in-house security or AI function.

Is AI deployment really a security project?

Almost always. An AI assistant or agent that is useful needs access to email, documents, CRM records or line-of-business systems. That access has to be granted through identity and permissions, scoped correctly, and logged — which makes it a security design exercise before it is an AI one.

Do you work outside Dorset and the South West?

Yes. We are based in Dorset and regularly work on site across the South West, but most security and AI work is delivered remotely, and we take UK-wide engagements.

What does an initial consultation involve?

A conversation, typically under an hour, about what you have, what concerns you and what you are trying to achieve. It is enough for both sides to judge whether there is worthwhile work to do. There is no charge and no obligation.

Make your technology safer — and more useful.

A short conversation is usually enough to establish whether there is something worth doing, and what it would involve. No obligation, and no sales script.