How can you perform a cybersecurity audit on a third-party vendor?

My key points: 1. Value Focus: Understand crucial cybersecurity aspects and how the vendor's systems align with your needs. 2. Utilize Existing Resources: Use current audit tools and processes when assessing the vendor. 3. Iterative Progress: Start with a targeted assessment, expand based on feedback, and adjust as necessary. 4. Collaborate: Involve the vendor, sharing findings and recommendations to foster trust. 5. Optimize: Review the vendor's practices, suggest improvements, and automate where feasible. Periodically reassess their security.

To effectively plan a security risk assessment, start by setting a clear goal, like finding vulnerabilities, evaluating the effectiveness of controls, or supporting decision-making processes. Understand your organization's unique needs and what's at stake. Identify key assets and systems to protect. Decide the scope and set timeframes. Consider legal requirements and available resources. Know who needs to be involved and how much risk the organization can tolerate. This focused approach ensures you're making real improvements to security, not just going through the motions.

Especially if it's a SaaS vendor, get a good understanding of the USE CASE and any data to be shared or exchanged, especially privacy or PII data.

Auditar la ciberseguridad de un proveedor externo es crucial para garantizar la protección de tus datos y sistemas. Considerar: -Identificar los activos críticos y datos sensibles que maneja -Las políticas de seguridad del proveedor, debe estar alineadas con tus estándares y regulaciones de seguridad -Evaluar el control de acceso y el uso del doble factor de autenticación -Monitoreo y detección de amenazas -Cuentan con un proceso de respuesta a incidentes de seguridad -Evaluar el proceso de gestión de vulnerabilidades y la aplicación de parches de seguridad de manera eficiente -Confirmar que exista un plan de respuesta a incidentes -Verificar que el proveedor cumpla con los estándares y regulaciones relevantes para tu industria

When reviewing vendor's policies and procedures I usually focus on the following areas. I scrutinize their security controls to see if they match my company's needs, from access rules to how they handle a data breach. Compliance isn't optional; they need to meet industry standards like GDPR and PCI-DSS. Additionally, if the vendor is dealing with sensitive data, they must be able to provide SOC 2 Type II reports. I assess their approach to risk and how well they can keep the business running during a crisis. I go through the relevant parts of SLAs and contracts to make sure we're on the same page. And I never skip checking their reputation; real-world feedback tells me more than any sales pitch.

When vetting a vendor's cybersecurity, examine their documentation thoroughly, especially their security policies and SOC2 reports. Confirm they have strong training programs in place. Assess for discrepancies or lapses that don't align with your standards. Certifications can provide a foundation, but always ensure they match your unique security requirements.

Following a dive into the vendor's policies, it's crucial to evaluate their technical landscape. This means scrutinizing their network, systems, and applications for any vulnerabilities or misconfigurations. Check the efficacy of their security tools, including firewalls, encryption, backups, and monitoring. Leveraging recognized assessment tools and frameworks, like vulnerability scanners or penetration testing, can offer insights into the robustness of their tech environment. Remember, understanding their infrastructure ensures a partnership built on trust and robust security.

I look at eight key areas in technical assessment. First, I examine their hardware and software to see if it's up to par. Next, I dig into their security measures, like firewalls and incident response. I also study their network design for resilience and redundancy. Data protection is crucial, so I check their encryption and backup methods. I evaluate their system uptime and disaster recovery plans. Change management is next; I want to know how they handle updates and testing. I also consider their dependencies on third parties and their ability to manage them. Lastly, I look at scalability and special features like SSO, MFA, and API security. I expect latest pentest reports with concrete plans to fix identified vulnerabilities.

Definitely run an SSLLabs reconaissance, which will tell you about TLS versions, cipher suites in use, and certificates. If it's a SaaS vendor, run an SSLLabs test against the vendor's API endpoint(s)

By evaluating the compliances of a third-party you also verify that they have the proper measures in place, by extent. It will guarantee you that the vendor take care of how they are managing the data and it will minimize the risk of being damaged if a cybersecurity incident happens on their end.

Develop a standard format for a Vendor Risk Assessment. I like to assign a ranking of "Low", "Medium", or "High" business impact or risk, based on the use case, data shared, and the results of the assessment.

A single point in time analysis of a 3rd-party vendor has limited value because the technology landscape changes so quickly. New vulnerabilities are discovered rapidly, business processes change and configuration drift means the previously secure environments can become exposed to attacks. Having a continuously-updated risk picture is what is most important. Thus, contractually requiring the sharing of Software Bills of Material (SBOM), disclosure of exploitable vulnerabilities, changes in data sub-processors, and similar security-relevant events can help you stay on top of these changes.

Most vendors are not going to agree to an audit by their customers. Instead, the common practice is to rely on audits, such as SOC 1, SOC 2, ISO 20000, and ISO 27001, to get the confidence necessary to feel comfortable. Some vendors don't have these audits. Another best practice is to send CAIQ or SIG questionnaires to vendors, tailored to subject matter relevant to the product or service the vendor provides. If neither approach is successful, then you have a situation where a vendor chooses to be opaque. What might they be hiding, and are you sure you want to do business with them?

Navigating third-party vendor cybersecurity is akin to traversing the Wild West; unpredictable and without standardized practices. Essential to many businesses, these vendors can be cybersecurity vulnerabilities. Hence, conducting a cybersecurity audit is imperative. This audit, a methodical evaluation of a vendor's security measures, ensures they align with your standards and regulatory mandates. To ensure robust vendor cybersecurity, adopt a step-by-step approach: assess their security posture, review their practices, and continuously monitor for any potential threats. As we await standardized vendor due diligence methods, proactive audits are our best defense.

You should communicate your security expectations with the vendor as part of the initial contract signature and review it once a year to ensure it remains appropriate. This must include reporting requirements and general communication plans in the event of any security incident event if no link between the vendor and organization appears to be compromised. If a vendor refuses you can either choose not to do business with them or implement compensating controls to mitigate the risk.

think about a vendor life cycle, from evaluation and onboarding, to annual review, to incident management, and finally offboarding.