Cyber risk assessments for Northern Beaches businesses
Not sure where you stand with your cyber risk? No worries. We run cyber risk assessments for businesses that need to meet a regulator’s standard, satisfy a cyber insurer, or just want to stop guessing about their security.
Why businesses get one
Most of the time we run cyber risk assessments for clients who need to answer some questions for their insurance policies when renewal comes around, or who have decided to take out a cyber insurance policy. Getting these questions right and aligned with the policy itself is crucial to being able to make a claim later if that ever needs to happen.
What we check
We basically audit your entire company’s infrastructure and can give you a general assessment based on the findings with recommendations, or we can do an assessment specifically for an insurance policy you are applying for or already have.
Examples of what we check:
- Disaster recovery plans in place
- Backups of onsite and offsite servers
- Data retention policies
- Multi factor authentication bound to business critical applications
- Staff machine level access
- Internet and network security
What a cyber risk assessment actually turns up
Here are a few things we have found in the past doing assessments for clients.
This would probably be one of the main ones we have seen throughout the years, daily backups with nothing actually there. A customer has had a backup setup at some stage but no one’s actively monitoring it. Best example is old servers not under any management for years humming away in the corner, with the last 2 years the backups have been failing due to USB drive failure. Ouch.
Another huge one we run into regularly is assumptions. Probably the most frequent is the assumption that Microsoft 365 data is backed up. We have some bad news there…. Unless you have setup your own cloud backup it’s not backed up at all. Cloud to cloud backups are a core component of a business’s data safety structure and is a fairly simple solution to setup, but countless businesses out there haven’t got it setup based off that one assumption. Double Ouch.
Let’s help you stop assuming and start knowing by implementing a cyber risk assessment for your company today.
What you get
A report you can actually read, in plain English. It tells you where you stand, ranks the risks from “fix this week” to “keep an eye on it” and gives you a plan to close the gaps. If you need it for an insurer or auditor, it’s documented the way they’ll accept. And if your security’s already in decent shape, we’ll say so rather than invent problems.
Meeting regulatory and insurance requirements
Cyber insurers have gotten a lot stricter. Many won’t issue or renew a policy now unless you’ve got multi factor authentication, tested backups, and a few other controls in place, and if you say you have them and you don’t, a claim can be knocked back. A risk assessment gives you an honest answer before you sign anything, plus a clear list of what to fix to qualify. The same goes for regulators and the security clauses creeping into client contracts. We help you clear the bar and prove you’ve cleared it.
After the assessment
Fixing the gaps is the next step and we can do that too, or work alongside whoever already looks after your IT. For businesses that need to hold a specific standard over time, our Essential Eight assessment and drift alignment service keep you at the level you need all the time.
Frequently asked questions
How’s this different from an Essential Eight assessment?
The risk assessment is a broad health check of your whole setup. The Essential Eight assessment scores you against a specific government framework. Plenty of businesses start here, then move to Essential Eight when a contract or regulator calls for it.
Will this help with my cyber insurance?
It shows you which controls your insurer wants, which you already have, and what to fix to qualify or bring the premium down. It’s also best to ask your insurer if you need a cyber risk assessment first.
Do you only work with big companies?
No. Most of our clients are small and medium Northern Beaches businesses.
What does it cost?
We quote it up front based on the size and complexity of your setup, so you’ll know the number before we start.
Want to know where your business really stands?
Book a free chat and we’ll talk it through, no pressure.
Talk to our teamNeed to meet a specific government standard? See our Essential Eight assessmentLooking for the most honest IT support on the Northern Beaches?
Tell us a bit about your business and we’ll come back with a plan, usually within one business day. No pressure, no jargon.
- 0413 692 829
- Northern Beaches · Sydney-wide & remote support Australia-wide
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