eSecurity Solutions Articles/Blog

There are Seven (7) important reasons why companies need a 3^rd party cyber security risk assessment.

Risk assessments help companies achieve regulation compliance level security if the recommendations from risk assessments are implemented and managed appropriately.

Companies who care about regulation level security are driven by three top level factors 1) compliance with security regulations, 2) customers who are driving them to be compliant with the customer’s regulation, and 3) genuinely caring about securing their and their customer’s data. These factors are important overall drivers for risk assessments. But, when you breakdown the benefits of risk assessments, there are seven reasons why companies really need them.

7 Reasons why Companies Need a 3rd Party Risk Assessment

1. To become regulation compliant
   • All cyber security regulations require or recommend 3rd party risk assessments as step #1 to defining your strategy, gaps and prioritized solutions.
2. To satisfy your customer’s demands to comply with their security regulations
   • Many regulations require regulated company’s partners (suppliers) to be compliant with the same rules as the regulated company. Regulated companies often require attestation to your compliance with their regulations in signed legal documents.
3. To define your prioritized security gaps
   • The first goal in a risk assessment is to define your security gaps (your current controls versus what is needed for your company to comply with your target regulation or best practices).
4. To define a prioritized list of security controls to address your security gaps
   • Step two in a risk assessment is to define your necessary security controls. A prioritized list based upon likelihood and impact of an attack helps you define your strategy & budget.
5. To define an overall security strategy based upon prioritized security gaps
   • You can’t define a security strategy without knowing what your risks are and what you need to do to mitigate your risks. Your strategy defines what to do and when.
6. To maximize your security budget – spending money in the highest priority areas 
   • A security review risk assessment defines a prioritized list of what needs to be done. Based upon that, you can maximize your budget and define an appropriate timeline.
7. To define a security implementation timeline 
   • Even if you had an infinite budget, you cannot implement and manage all required changes all at once. Thus the necessity of having a prioritized list of needed controls, along with the risk of not implementing them, helps companies define an appropriate timeline for implementation.

The reasons companies get 3rd party risk assessments can be summarized as 1) for compliance, 2) to retain customers, 3) to aid with planning, 4) to help define optimized budgets, and 5) to achieve the best security within their budgets. Getting the right security customized for your company should be everyone’s goal. Risk assessments enable informed security.

Contact us today to see how you can utilize risk assessments to get the best possible security for your company!