Perspective
Vendor risk is now your risk
Security and compliance
Third-party breaches account for roughly 30 percent of all incidents, and the number is rising. Most small and mid-size companies manage the risk of only a fraction of their vendors. When a vendor has access to your systems, your customer data, or your operational workflows, their security posture becomes your exposure. SOC 2 reports, security questionnaires, and contract language that defines data handling obligations are not just enterprise-level concerns. Any company that depends on vendors for critical functions needs a basic vendor risk process, even if it is lightweight.
Further reading · CIO.com
5 IT Risks CIOs Should Be Paranoid About
This is the kind of problem I help companies work through.
If an auditor, customer, or investor is asking about security and you are not sure you are ready, that is the conversation.
I work as a fractional CIO or CTO for companies that need senior technology leadership without a full-time hire.