We’ve been making good progress on the alpha of the new PSN compliance process, which I talked about last month. So good, in fact, that we’re now ready to take the next big step - it’s beta time.
I mentioned in my last post that we’d extended the reach of the alpha to a number of other organisations, so we could test the process on different set-ups and structures. This really proved to be a valuable move, with lots of good feedback, comments and actual experience that has helped us fine tune our ideas about the new process.
With the benefit of these additional views we were able to close-off the alpha at the end of last week. A big thanks goes to everyone who got involved. We’ve now reviewed all the feedback and have used it to update the documentation and guidance so we can move on to the next step: the beta, which will kick-off in the next few days.
Early-bird
With the beta we’re keen to get a much wider idea of real-world experiences with the new process, so customers wanting to connect to PSN will now have the option of using the new compliance process when you renew your application. It’s a sort of early-bird promotion, so you get a chance to try the new process out for yourself. Of course, if you’d prefer to use the existing process - and wait for the full roll-out - then that’s not a problem: whichever route fits you best is fine with us. We’re still expecting the roll-out for the new process to start in early April, but we’ll let you know exactly when and how as soon as the details are confirmed.
We’ll be contacting organisations that are currently renewing or about to renew their compliance application to let you know about the options available and how it will affect your renewal.
Supplier process now live
In last month’s update I talked about how we were revising the process for suppliers of PSN services, with the introduction of the new Cabinet Office certification process. We’re very happy to say that this process is now live so service providers are now being moved over to the new one.
It means you won’t have to go through the Pan Government Accreditation (PGA) process, which should make it much simpler and cost effective for organisations to offer their services. Of course, things don’t change for organisations supplying the vital connectivity services: they’ll continue to be assessed through CESG’s PGA scheme.
We’ll continue to keep you posted as the beta progresses. Expect another update within the next two weeks, but if you’ve got any questions then please contact us.
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5 comments
Comment by Cliff York posted on
We are a County Council with our PSN compliance valid till 27th September. However, change takes time to plan in, and get resources lined up. Is there any chance we can see any of the beta docs at this stage please? Even if we were not looking to use them, we can at least try to see the way the wind is blowing....
Comment by Mark Smith posted on
Dear Cliff
Thank you for your comment - sounds like a good idea. You can find the beta documents on the PSN website at https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/public-services-network#our-services
Comment by Liz Holmes posted on
Please can you advise where the detailed information for the Security Principles can be found? The PSN CoCo makes reference to EUD Security Principles 2.3, 2.11, 2.12 etc however when navigating to the documents EUD Security Principles and the EUD Framework, they do not contain such references. Is there another detailed document that we should be looking at?
Additionally, is it possible to have a full summary of all the supporting documents required for the PSN CoCo submission in one place including the hyperlinks?
Comment by Mark Smith posted on
Thanks for letting us know Liz.
CESG's guidance was updated just as we published the beta CoCo and the number references changed. The content hasn't changed, just the numbers: so Security Principle 2.11 is now Security Principle 11, 2.12 is 12 and so on. We've updated the PSN CoCo on our website. Sorry for the confusion. We'll also take on-board your feedback about the supporting documents and review along with other feedback we get. If it makes it easier for people then we'll aim to make it happen.
Comment by Liz Holmes posted on
Thanks for the clarification Mark. I'm currently working on our 2015 submission using the Beta version and happy to provide further feedback of the process.