Completed Cyber Risk Assessments (CRAs) immediately provide value by benchmarking your investment’s cyber preparedness against your entire portfolio. Utilizing a CRA to its full potential requires you to learn from the insights and data gathered to improve your cyber program.
Here are the essential do’s and don’ts after you complete a CRA:
Do’s:
- Prioritize high-risk findings
Promptly address the most significant vulnerabilities identified in a Cyber Risk Assessment. Focus on vulnerabilities that pose the greatest threat to your Private Equity portfolio and overall cyber resilience. With the help of an independent cyber expert and data-driven insights, you can quickly focus on the most threatening risks to improve your program.
Read: Vendors – The overlooked cybersecurity risk for Private Equity Firms
- Plan remediation
Develop a remediation strategy for addressing prioritized vulnerabilities. An effective strategy should clearly outline the tasks, resources, budget, and deadlines necessary for any remediation initiatives. Assigning clear accountabilities – to yourself, team, IT leads and cyber advisor – is critical.
Read: How a cybersecurity breach disrupts your Portfolio Company’s exit performance
- Accept risk when applicable
Certain risks are more tolerable than others based on their likelihood and impact. Have discussions internally and with your cyber advisor to develop a 360-degree view of the business and technical trade-offs to risk acceptance. Continuous monitoring ensures these accepted risks remain manageable and within acceptable boundaries.
- Regularly review and update
Continuously monitor the cybersecurity landscape and appropriate frameworks (be they cyber like NIST or regulatory such as SEC and DORA). Regularly reassessing your PE portfolio vulnerabilities, and adjusting your cyber strategy accordingly are the keys to an excellent cyber posture.
Read: Why Cyber Risk Assessments are crucial for Private Equity firms & their Portfolio Companies
- Standardize reporting
Standardized reporting ensures clear, consistent communication of findings and action plans. This enhances transparency, accountability, and comparative risk management across your portfolio so that you are always ready for a stakeholder to review.
Don’ts:
- Do nothing
Taking no action after a Cyber Risk Assessment allows identified vulnerabilities to remain unaddressed, potentially leading to data breaches, financial loss, reputational damage, and legal consequences.
Read: Do Managers with a small staff still need a cyber program?
- Assume perfection
Assuming perfection after a positive Cyber Risk Assessment can foster complacency, especially as cyber risks change with the threat landscape and the maturity of your business. The key is to have a plan and continue to make progress with your real-world infrastructure, data, and user controls. Overconfidence can lead to inadequate monitoring and delayed responses to incidents, increasing the damage of breaches.
- Ignore context
Never overlook the unique operational and technological environment surrounding your portfolio or your firm. Tailoring responses to their specific context ensures more accurate cyber risk management, and more efficient use of resources to achieve your best cyber posture
- Hinder collaboration
Effective cybersecurity relies on coordinated efforts from IT, management, and staff. A lack of collaboration can lead to gaps in defense and increased vulnerability to cyber threats. Foster an environment between your PortCo’s that allows cyber intelligence sharing.
Recommended next steps— Partner with Drawbridge, an independent cyber vendor, for objective Cyber Risk Assessment findings and a dedicated Client Success team to guide remediation planning and reporting on your improved cyber posture.
Request a Drawbridge demo today.
