Meta Defence Labs
Meta Defence Labs is a UK-based NCSC-assured cybersecurity consultancy and Cyber Essentials certification body offering penetration testing, vulnerability management, virtual CISO services, IT infrastructure design, and security training to SMEs and mid-to-large organisations in the UK and South Asia.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Meta Defence Labs does
Meta Defence Labs is a UK-based cybersecurity consultancy and IT infrastructure services firm, founded in 2015 and headquartered at Level39, One Canada Square in Canary Wharf, London, with additional offices in Exeter and Colombo (Sri Lanka via a wholly-owned subsidiary). The company operates as an NCSC Assured Solution Provider and an Authorised Certification Body for UK government-accredited Cyber Essentials, Cyber Essentials Plus, and IASME schemes. Its core cybersecurity services include penetration testing (black/white/grey box methodologies for web, internal, and external infrastructure), continuous vulnerability management, IT and security audits, post-penetration remediation, and Web Application Firewall design and support. A dedicated compliance practice delivers virtual CISO/DPO services, GDPR readiness, and compliance management, while an infrastructure arm provides virtualisation, end-user computing (Citrix/VMware), server consolidation, and business continuity services. A training division offers security awareness, data protection, cyber crisis management workshops, and the SHe CISO Exec. women's leadership programme.
The company generates revenue entirely through professional services on a quote-based model, with a free complementary consultation as the primary demand-generation tool. Cyber Essentials certifications are priced at approximately £300 and Cyber Essentials Plus at £1,400+, while pen testing and infrastructure engagements are scoped per engagement with both one-off and annual subscription pricing options. GTM is sales-led via website quote requests, phone, and email, supplemented by content marketing (a blog active since 2015), organic social media, and partnerships with Darktrace, VMware, KnowBe4, EC-Council, Citrix, the HiveMind expert network, the Cyber Exchange, and the Cyber Resilience Centre for London. Customers span UK SMEs (the primary Cyber Essentials segment) through to medium and large organisations with complex IT environments, with implied work delivered to "the big four" accounting firms. Ownership is private and founder-led under Managing Director Chani Simms, with no external funding disclosed.
Meta Defence Labs firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Meta Defence Labs
- Legal name
- Meta Defence Labs Ltd.
- Website
- https://metadefencelabs.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Meta Defence Labs is a UK-based NCSC-assured cybersecurity consultancy and Cyber Essentials certification body offering penetration testing, vulnerability management, virtual CISO services, IT infrastructure design, and security training to SMEs and mid-to-large organisations in the UK and South Asia.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Meta Defence Labs industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cybersecurity Consultancy and Certification Services
- NAICS
- Testing Laboratories and Services (54138), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151)
- SIC
- Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Security Audits & Compliance (ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI DSS, HIPAA, SOX) (BPAKADAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Web Application Security (WAF, RASP) (HDADACAA), Resilience Testing, DR Drills & Compliance Readiness (BPAEALAF)
Keywords
Where Meta Defence Labs is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Meta Defence Labs business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Cybersecurity Consultancy Services: Penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, security audits, CISO executive services, and incident response consulting.
- Certification Services: Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certification assessments, IASME certifications, GDPR compliance certifications.
- Training Services: SHe CISO Exec training, Security Awareness training, Data Protection & Compliance training, Cyber Crisis Management workshops.
- Infrastructure Services: Virtualisation solutions, end-user computing, server consolidation & migration, business continuity & disaster recovery, IT infrastructure design validation.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Cyber Essentials Certification |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Cyber Essentials Plus Certification |
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | One-off Penetration Testing |
| Subscription | Annual | Subscription-based Penetration Testing |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Meta Defence Labs product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Meta Defence Labs is a UK-based cybersecurity and IT infrastructure consultancy that provides penetration testing, vulnerability management, IT and security audits, GDPR compliance, and Virtual CISO/DPO services to organisations. As an NCSC Assured Solution Provider and Authorised Certification Body, it assesses and certifies UK organisations against the Cyber Essentials, Cyber Essentials Plus, and IASME cyber assurance schemes. It also delivers IT infrastructure services (virtualisation, end-user computing, server consolidation, business continuity) using Citrix, Microsoft, and VMware technologies, alongside cybersecurity awareness and executive training.
Product overview
Meta Defence Labs is a cybersecurity consultancy and IT infrastructure services firm offering a portfolio of distinct service lines rather than a unified software product. The core cybersecurity services include vulnerability management, penetration testing, and security audits, which feed into certification services for Cyber Essentials and IASME. The compliance practice provides GDPR consulting and virtual CISO/DPO services. Infrastructure services encompass virtualisation solutions, end-user computing, and server migration using Citrix and VMware technologies. A training division delivers security awareness, data protection, and crisis management programmes. The company operates as an authorised certification body for UK government-accredited Cyber Essentials and IASME certifications.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Vulnerability Management
Quantifiable outcome
- Cyber Essentials certification protects organisations from approximately 80% of common cyber-attacks
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Meta Defence Labs
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Meta Defence Labs technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Meta Defence Labs partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- DarktracecoreCertified Partner for Darktrace threat detection and classification products. Provides consultancy through to services delivery of Darktrace products.
- VMwarecoreVMware Professional Solution Provider. Equipped with the right technology and expert knowledge to deliver services from designing to planning and implementation of industry leading virtualisation and cloud computing solutions.
- IASME ConsortiumcoreAuthorised Certification Body for the UK government accredited Cyber Essentials and IASME certifications. Provides certification assessments for organisations seeking Cyber Essentials and IASME Cyber Assurance certification.
- HiveMindcoreNetwork of 1500+ outstanding experts and 80+ boutique firms providing joined-up expertise to over 1000 organisations around the globe.
- Cyber ExchangeminorMember of the UK Cyber Exchange not-for-profit initiative. Enables interaction across industry, academia and government, providing a UK cybersecurity shop window.
- CRC for LondonminorCyber Resilience Centre (CRC) for London partnership supporting London-based organisations with cybersecurity resources.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Meta Defence Labs competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- IOActive: Global cybersecurity consultancy specialising in penetration testing, application security, and security research. Comparable service-led model with similar pen testing and vulnerability management offerings, though operating at greater scale internationally.
- WithSecure: Finland-headquartered cybersecurity firm (formerly F-Secure corporate business) offering attack simulation, vulnerability management, and managed detection. Comparable in service-led cyber consultancy model with similar penetration testing and exposure management offerings.
- Secarma: UK-based penetration testing and cybersecurity consultancy with a strong CREST-accredited testing practice. Direct competitor in penetration testing and security advisory, particularly for UK SMEs and mid-market firms.
- Bridewell Consulting: UK-based cybersecurity consultancy offering penetration testing, managed detection, and security advisory to mid-market and enterprise clients. Highly comparable in size, geography, and service mix — direct head-to-head competitor for Meta Defence Labs in UK pen testing and compliance work.
- SureCloud: UK cybersecurity and compliance services firm offering penetration testing, GRC, and certification support. Comparable in delivering Cyber Essentials-style compliance plus technical security testing to UK mid-market customers.
- Cyberis: UK cybersecurity consultancy providing penetration testing, incident response, and security advisory. Closely comparable in service portfolio and UK mid-market focus, competing for similar Cyber Essentials, pen testing, and assurance engagements.
- Pentest Ltd: UK-based penetration testing specialist offering CREST-accredited testing services. Narrower but directly overlapping scope with Meta Defence Labs' pen testing practice, competing for the same UK testing budgets.
Broad incumbents
- NCC Group: UK-listed cybersecurity and software resilience firm with a global footprint and a broad assurance, pen testing, and managed services portfolio. Much larger and broader than Meta Defence Labs, but overlaps heavily in UK pen testing and security advisory.
- Trustwave: Global MSSP and cybersecurity consultancy offering vulnerability management, pen testing, and advisory services. Larger and broader than Meta Defence Labs, but competes in vulnerability management and security testing engagements globally.
- KPMG Cybersecurity Services: Big Four professional services firm with a global cybersecurity advisory practice. Meta Defence Labs both serves and competes with KPMG's cyber practice, particularly for mid-market and enterprise clients needing pen testing and compliance work.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Meta Defence Labs social profiles
Digital presenceMeta Defence Labs financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Meta Defence Labs leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Meta Defence Labs subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Meta Defence Labs funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Meta Defence Labs M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Meta Defence Labs
What does Meta Defence Labs do?
Meta Defence Labs is a UK-based cybersecurity and IT infrastructure consultancy that provides penetration testing, vulnerability management, IT and security audits, GDPR compliance, and Virtual CISO/DPO services to organisations. As an NCSC Assured Solution Provider and Authorised Certification Body, it assesses and certifies UK organisations against the Cyber Essentials, Cyber Essentials Plus, and IASME cyber assurance schemes. It also delivers IT infrastructure services (virtualisation, end-user computing, server consolidation, business continuity) using Citrix, Microsoft, and VMware technologies, alongside cybersecurity awareness and executive training.
Is Meta Defence Labs a public or private company?
Meta Defence Labs is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Meta Defence Labs founded?
Meta Defence Labs was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Meta Defence Labs based?
Meta Defence Labs is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Meta Defence Labs make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Cybersecurity Consultancy Services are the primary driver. The others are certification Services, training Services and infrastructure Services.
Who are Meta Defence Labs's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are IOActive, WithSecure, Secarma, Bridewell Consulting, SureCloud, Cyberis and Pentest Ltd. Broad incumbents are NCC Group, Trustwave and KPMG Cybersecurity Services.
Does Meta Defence Labs have an API?
No public API is recorded for Meta Defence Labs.
What industry is Meta Defence Labs in?
Meta Defence Labs's product category is Cybersecurity Consultancy and Certification Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAKADAC, Security Audits & Compliance (ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI DSS, HIPAA, SOX), with a secondary code of HDADACAA, Web Application Security (WAF, RASP). Its NAICS code is 54138 and its SIC code is 8734.