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LRQA

Threat Intelligence-led Penetration Testing / Red Team (STAR/STAR-FS/GBEST/GCASE/CBEST/TIBER/CyAS)

LRQA’s (formerly Nettitude) Threat Intelligence–led Penetration Testing / Red Teaming uses real-world intelligence to simulate sophisticated attacks. Aligned with STAR, STAR-FS, GBEST, GCASE, CBEST, TIBER and CyAS frameworks, it identifies vulnerabilities across people, processes, and technology, assesses organisational resilience, and delivers actionable recommendations to strengthen security posture and regulatory compliance.

Features

  • Alignment with STAR/-FS, GBEST, GCASE, CBEST, CyAS and TIBER frameworks.
  • Intelligence-led attack simulations based on real-world threat actor behaviour.
  • CCTIM-certified analysts delivering regulator-approved threat intelligence.
  • Regulator-approved testing delivered by CCSAS and CCSAM-certified specialists.
  • Findings mapped to MITRE ATT&CK for structured analysis.
  • Customised scenarios tailored to sector-specific risks and organisational context.
  • State-of-the-art proprietary custom tooling to mimic sophisticated threat actors.
  • Adversary emulation using validated tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).
  • Comprehensive reporting with actionable recommendations and risk prioritisation.
  • Collaborative debrief workshops to align findings with operational resilience goals.

Benefits

  • Proactively uncovers hidden vulnerabilities across technology, processes, and people.
  • Improves detection and response capability through realistic adversary simulations.
  • Reduces breach risk and financial loss by identifying exposure points.
  • Validates security investments, showing where existing controls fail or succeed.
  • Improves cyber resilience against advanced, persistent threats and targeted attacks.
  • Provides executive-level assurance with clear, evidence-based security insights.
  • Drives focused improvements, supporting risk-based prioritisation of remediation activities.
  • Identifies weaknesses in human behaviour, including susceptibility to social engineering.
  • Validates incident response playbooks under realistic attack conditions.
  • Ensures alignment with regulatory expectations and guidance.

Pricing

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at cyberbidteam@lrqa.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 15

Service ID

6 0 6 5 8 6 9 9 3 1 1 1 1 4 9

Contact

LRQA Grace Harrison
Telephone: 0345 5200085
Email: cyberbidteam@lrqa.com

About the service

Service categories
  • Cloud Support Services
    • Security Services
      • Security strategy
        • Security strategy
      • Security risk management
        • Security risk management
      • Security audit services
        • Security audit services
      • Security quality assurance (QA) and testing
        • Security quality assurance (QA) and testing
      • Other
        • Other

Service scope

Service constraints
LRQA’s Threat Intelligence–led Penetration Testing / Red Teaming operates within defined constraints to ensure safety, legality, and regulatory alignment. Engagements are limited to agreed scopes, systems, facilities, and personnel, and testing is designed to simulate attacks without causing real harm. Outcomes depend on the accuracy of client-provided information and current security measures. The service does not implement remediation, which remains the responsibility of the organisation, and repeated or ongoing testing is required to maintain long-term resilience.

User support

Email or online ticketing support
Yes
Support response times
We provide email-based support as a core part of our service, ensuring clients have a clear and convenient way to communicate with our team. Availability: Standard support is available during UK business hours (09:00–17:00, Monday–Friday, excluding public holidays). Response: Clients can expect timely, structured responses from their dedicated Account Manager or assigned technical contact.
User can manage status and priority of support tickets
No
Phone support
Yes
Phone support availability
9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
Web chat support
No
Support levels
Each engagement is supported by a dedicated Account Manager, who serves as the primary point of contact for coordination, scheduling, and client communication. For larger or complex projects, we also assign a Technical Project Lead to oversee the team and ensure technical quality and consistency, as well as a PRINCE2-certified Project Manager to manage timelines, deliverables, and reporting. Available during UK business hours (09:00–17:00, Monday–Friday, excluding public holidays). Support provided via email, telephone, and our secure client portal. Includes: scheduling and scope clarification, ongoing engagement updates, delivery of draft and final reports, post-engagement review session to discuss findings and remediation advice. Cost: Included within the service fee.

Supplier type

Supplier type
Not a reseller

Staff security

Staff security clearance
Conforms to BS7858:2019
Government security clearance
Developed Vetting (DV)

Pricing

Discount for educational organisations
No

Government Digital and Data Roles

Cyber security roles

Cyber security audit and assurance
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Lead cyber security audit and assurance £995.00
Principal cyber security audit and assurance £1,100.00
Cyber security governance and risk management
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Associate cyber security governance and risk manager £995.00
Lead cyber security governance and risk manager £995.00
Principal cyber security governance and risk manager £1,100.00
Cyber security incident response
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Associate cyber incident response £1,000.00
Lead cyber security incident response £1,220.00
Principal cyber security incident response £1,520.00
Cyber security vulnerability management
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Associate cyber security vulnerability management £900.00 £775.00
Lead cyber security vulnerability management £950.00 £800.00
Principal cyber security vulnerability management £1,000.00
Cyber security digital forensics
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Associate cyber security digital forensics £1,000.00
Lead cyber security digital forensics £1,220.00
Principal cyber security digital forensics £1,520.00
Cyber security testing
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Associate cyber security testing £900.00 £775.00
Lead cyber security penetration testing £950.00 £800.00
Principal cyber security testing £1,000.00
Cyber security secure design
Role level UK Rate Offshore Rate
Associate cyber security secure systems architecture and design £995.00
Lead cyber security secure systems architecture and design £995.00
Principal cyber security secure systems architecture and design £1,100.00

Standards and certifications

ISO/IEC 27001 certification
Yes
ISO/IEC 27001 accredited by
Alcumus ISOQAR
ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date
Wednesday 23 October 2024
What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover
Our ISO/IEC 27001 certification covers the information security management system (ISMS) within the defined scope. It does not certify customer environments, specific technical security controls or outcomes, individual employees, or third-party systems and services outside the ISMS scope.
ISO 28000:2022 certification
No
ISO 9001 certification
Yes
ISO 9001 certification accredited by
Alcumus ISOQAR
ISO 9001 accreditation date
Tuesday 19 September 2023
What the ISO 9001 doesn’t cover
ISO 9001 certifies our quality management processes for delivering services, not specific products, technical security controls, people, or customer environments.
Quality management systems (QMS)
Yes
CSA STAR certification
No
PCI certification
No
Cyber essentials
Yes
Cyber Essentials Certificate Number
14f0c508-0ab7-4789-b83d-d9968c831ed3
Cyber essentials plus
Yes
Cyber Essentials Plus Certificate Number
04e7302a-b45d-4d34-ab4f-5beb13d3815c
Other security certifications
Yes
Any other security certifications
CREST Membership (04705154)

Social value

Mission: Kick start economic growth

To secure the highest sustained growth in the G7 - with good jobs and productivity growth in every part of the country making everyone, not just a few, better off.

Policy Outcome 1: Fair work: That offers fair wages and good working conditions. Help people get a job, stay in work, and progress in their careers, with good employment opportunities across the country. Notes: Where there is a large proportion of labour costs in the contract, commercial teams should consider MAC in Outcome 1 as a priority

  • New or retained jobs on the contract workforce in the relevant area that meet the criteria set out in MAC 1b, 1c and 1d
  • New apprenticeships on the contract workforce in the relevant area that meet the criteria set out in MAC 1b
  • Providing opportunities for, and measuring and monitoring of, staff workforce conditions over time, including employee engagement, involvement in decision-making and satisfaction and adapting to any changes in the results, with clear processes for acting on issues identified
  • Plans to engage the contract workforce in deciding the most important workplace issues to address
  • Monitoring of employee engagement rates (by protected characteristic) and, where necessary, the development of actions to ensure all voices are heard across the diversity of the workforce
  • Employment contracts that reflect actual hours worked; steps taken to ensure employees understand their contracts and have the ability to review and adjust them if actual hours regularly exceed contracted hours
  • Activities that support an environment where staff are educated about, and feel empowered to, address their physical wellbeing
  • Activities that support an environment where staff are educated about and feel empowered to report and address bullying and harassment
  • Activities to cascade good practice on fair working conditions throughout the supply chain
  • Offer a pay and leave entitlement to all eligible staff who become kinship carers, ideally equivalent to statutory adoption pay and leave
  • Payment of more than the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage (as appropriate) to the contract workforce
  • Entitlement to sick pay for the contract workforce, with provision in place for any staff who do not meet the earnings threshold for statutory sick pay, payment of sick pay from day one of absence and payment of staff on the contract workforce who are off sick a replacement income of 100% of their usual earnings for as long as possible
  • Plans for an appropriate income replacement policy for staff who are required to spend time away from work to care for a sick dependent or close relative
  • Measures to support in-work progression to help people in the contract workforce, to move into higher paid work by developing new skills relevant to the contract
  • Support for the contract workforce by providing career advice, and providing opportunities for staff working on the contract with in-work progression career development into known skills shortages or high growth areas
  • Support for educational attainment relevant to the contract, including training schemes that address skills gaps and result in recognised qualifications
  • Volunteering opportunities for staff
  • Understanding of the modern slavery risks and issues affecting the market, industry, sector or country (of origin or of source) relevant to the contract, and the workforce in the supplier’s own organisation and those of its key subcontractors
  • Measures to identify, mitigate and manage modern slavery risks relating to the contract and how these will be implemented
  • Outline policies and practices to be applied to or put in place for the contract to mitigate and manage modern slavery risks, including: Pre-employment checks, recruitment practices. Workplace conditions, safeguarding plans and processes in place and regular monitoring with relevant groups considered, which may include sampling
  • How these flow down the supply chain and are monitored Illustrative examples include reporting, site visits, audits, etc.
  • How to ensure business decisions re: price/cost, short lead times, payment timescales do not create modern slavery risks in the supply chain
  • Means of influencing staff, suppliers, customers, communities and/or any other appropriate stakeholders with respect to modern slavery risks relating to the contract

Policy Outcome 2: Skills for growth: Supporting growth sectors and addressing skills gaps.

  • Understanding of employment and relevant skills issues, and of the education and training issues relating to the contract. Illustrative examples: demographics, skills shortages, new opportunities in high growth sectors, geographic/local community and skills/employment challenges
  • Support for educational attainment relevant to the contract, including training schemes that address skills gaps and result in recognised qualifications
  • Activities to support relevant sector related skills growth and sustainability in the contract workforce. Illustrative examples: careers talks, curriculum support, literacy support, safety talks and volunteering
  • Delivery of apprenticeships, supported internships and T Level industry placement opportunities (Level 2, 3 and 4+) in relation to the contract

Policy Outcome 3: Resilient, innovative and flexible supply chains: Support economic growth through enabling resilient businesses, opportunities for small businesses and voluntary, community and social enterprises

  • Plans for engaging a diverse range of businesses in engagement activities prior to appointing subcontractors (including activities prior to award of the main contract and during the contract term)
  • Activities that demonstrate a collaborative way to work with a diverse range of businesses as part of the supply chain
  • Structuring of the supply chain selection process to ensure fairness (e.g. anti-corruption) and encourages participation by a diverse range of businesses, including with regard to new businesses, entrepreneurs, start-ups, SMEs, VCSEs and mutual
  • Plans for positive actions with community groups.
  • Support for community-led initiatives relevant to the contract. Illustrative examples: improving transport links; reducing loneliness; helping with English language proficiency; and facilitating social mixing among people with different backgrounds
Mission: Make Britain a clean energy superpower

To cut bills, create jobs and deliver security with cheaper, zero-carbon electricity by 2030, accelerating to net zero

Policy Outcome 4: Sustainable procurement practices: Reducing carbon footprints, minimising waste, and promoting the use of clean energy and green technologies.

  • Understanding of opportunities for additional environmental benefits delivery in the performance of the contract, including working towards net zero carbon emissions and use of clean energy and green technologies
  • Delivery of additional environmental benefits through the performance of the contract, including working towards net zero carbon emissions and use of clean energy and green technologies
  • Understanding of how to influence staff, suppliers, customers, communities and/or any other appropriate stakeholders through the delivery of the contract to support climate and nature protection and improvement
  • Activities to reconnect people with the environment and increase awareness of ways to protect and enhance it
Mission: Break down barriers to opportunity

By reforming our childcare and education systems, to make sure there is no class ceiling on the ambitions of young people in Britain

Policy Outcome 6: Employment and training: For those who face barriers to employment

  • Understanding of employment and skills issues, and of the skills and employment shortages of high growth sectors relating to the contract
  • Creation of employment opportunities particularly for those who face barriers to employment, such as prison leavers, care leavers and/or who are located in deprived areas, and for people in industries with known skills shortages or in high growth sectors
  • Delivery of training schemes and programmes to address any identified skills gaps and under-representation in the workforce for the contract (e.g. prison leavers, care leavers, kinship carers, disabled people)
  • Advertising, promotional and outreach activities designed to raise awareness of the offer to reach the target cohort
  • Inclusive and accessible recruitment practices, and retention-focused activities, including those provided in the Guide for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition
  • Offering a range of quality opportunities with routes of progression if appropriate, e.g. T Level industry placements, students supported into higher level apprenticeships.
  • Working conditions which promote an inclusive working environment and promote retention and progression
  • Understanding of the issues affecting inequality in employment, skills and pay in the market, industry or sector relevant to the contract, and in the supplier’s own organisation and those of its key sub-contractors. Measures to tackle inequality in employment, skills and pay in the contract workforce
  • Inclusive and accessible development practices, including guidance for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition

Policy Outcome 7: Creating a pipeline of opportunities: For the contract workforce, reducing barriers to entry for under-represented groups.

  • Advertising, promotional and outreach activities designed to raise awareness of the offer to reach the target cohort
  • Content of the outreach activity is designed to suit the target cohort
  • Advertising, promotional and outreach activities designed to raise awareness of the offer to reach the target cohort
Mission: Build an NHS fit for the future

That is there when people need it; with fewer lives lost to the biggest killers; in a fairer Britain, where everyone lives well for longer.

Policy Outcome 8: Increasing productivity through physical and mental wellbeing: In the supply chain and communities in the relevant area.

  • Understanding of issues relating to health and wellbeing, including physical and mental health, in the contract workforce
  • Inclusive and accessible recruitment practices, development practices and retention policies that support-focused activities including those provided in the Guide for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing which support people with a disability or health condition
  • Actions to invest in the physical and mental health and wellbeing of the contract workforce

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at cyberbidteam@lrqa.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.