The right cybersecurity leadership is important for your foundational infrastructure. In this blog, we explain what a virtual CISO is and how one can be a potential CISO solution for your company.
A virtual chief information security officer (CISO) could be the security expert your fast-growing business needs. Typically working part-time, contract, or remotely, a virtual CISO brings a wealth of experience and leadership while being a cost-effective hire for your company. The average full-time CISO salary is $245,194 annually, with some salary ranges going as high as $276,993. If that salary doesn’t align with your hiring budget or you’re looking for flexibility, a virtual CISO is an attractive option.
What Is a Virtual CISO and How Does it Compare to Other CISO Roles?
Traditional CISO roles have increased in popularity over the last decade in response to cybersecurity’s growing importance and sophistication. More sensitive data is stored online today, making businesses more vulnerable to breaches and hacks. Plus, hacks are more business-damaging than ever, with 60 percent of small businesses closing their doors within six months of an incident. Here are a few other factors driving the rise in CISOs:
- Increasingly damaging data breaches, resulting in financial costs, reputational, damage, customer distrust, and public backlash
- More rigorous and constantly changing regulatory requirements like GDPR, HIPAA, PCI DSS, and more
- Increased third-party risk through external vendors
Definition of a Virtual CISO
A virtual CISO is a third-party cybersecurity professional who steps in with a flexible, objective perspective to bring your security organization back on track. You might want them to bridge the time between hiring a full-time CISO, or if you’re a smaller organization, you may need help building a security program from the ground up. Virtual CISOs are flexible and provide expertise on an as-needed basis.
Key Responsibilities of a Virtual CISO
A virtual CISO provides many of the same responsibilities a full-time leader would, such as:
- Developing a security strategy
- Supporting risk management
- Maintaining and enforcing standards and procedures
- Ensuring compliance and audit management
- Handling crisis management
Now that you understand the key responsibilities of a virtual CISCO, let’s compare them to traditional and fractional CISO roles.
Comparison of Traditional and Fractional CISO Roles
A virtual CISO is very similar to a traditional or fractional CISO in terms of day-to-day duties and responsibilities. A virtual CISO most likely works remotely in a part-time role and might also advise other companies, while a traditional CISO is a W2 employee. Other fractional security roles can support overall security strategy, fill a specific gap in your IT expertise, or solve an emerging issue like employees becoming lax about security when working from home.
Now that you understand the virtual CISO responsibilities, let’s talk about the potential advantages of hiring one for your business.
What Are the Key Benefits of Hiring a Virtual CISO?
A virtual CISO is popular among small businesses that most likely don’t have the budget or need for a full-time executive. Only 10 percent of large enterprises with over 5,000 employees do not have a full-time CISO, compared to 64 percent of small businesses operating without one. Even large enterprises that have in-house CISOs can benefit from these services. Virtual CISOs can come in as needed and serve as executive advisors to supplement their existing security approach.
Cost-Effectiveness for Organizations
One of the biggest advantages is cost-effectiveness. Businesses save significantly on salary and benefits and often work on an hourly or retainer basis cheaper than a full-time employee. Plus, your company doesn’t pay the ancillary costs of a W-2 employee, like health insurance, retirement, or paid time off. Compared to the over $200K range of a full-time CISO, a virtual role is often significantly more cost-effective.
Access to Specialized Expertise
Another advantage is access to a wealth of knowledge. Virtual CISOs might have a decades-long resume in a specific industry or field, and your business receives this expert guidance at a reduced cost. They can quickly ramp up to speed, make strategic recommendations, and rapidly bring incredible change to your security posture.
Flexibility and Scalability of Services
Virtual CISOs can increase or decrease their workload depending on your budget and needs. If you have an upcoming regulatory audit, virtual CISOs can temporarily increase their hours. During slower seasons or when you need expert oversight, a virtual CISO might only work a few hours a week.
If you need a flexible, cost-effective security leader, a virtual CISO provides significant benefits. But exactly how do they revolutionize your overall cybersecurity strategy?
How Does a Virtual CISO Drive Cybersecurity Strategy?
While cost efficiency, scalability and expertise are important, a virtual CISO’s main responsibility is to create, maintain or overhaul your cybersecurity strategy. Depending on your company’s growth stage, you might need their expertise to build from the ground up, tear down an old, outdated infrastructure, or overhaul employee training and development.
Developing Comprehensive Security Programs
Virtual CISOs can advise and build a comprehensive security program from scratch. They might start with an initial assessment, develop a strategy, and create an implementation plan.
If you’re looking to modernize outdated systems, they might run a thorough audit of your basic practices, create a modernization plan, and guide your internal team through the implementation and integration. They can create detailed security policies and procedures, support incident response plans, and create an ongoing framework for maintaining regulatory compliance.
As only 50 percent of cybersecurity leaders believe their training program is effective, a virtual CISO could even advise on new strategies and third-party resources to bolster employee training.
Aligning Security Initiatives With Business Objectives
While a virtual CISO is a talented tactical expert, they’re also a high-level leader. They’ll be able to advise your executive team on how to align security initiatives with overall business objectives. For example, if your company is highly committed to protecting user data and financial information as a wealth advisory firm, a virtual CISO can focus on data management, customer trust, and maintaining always-on, automated threat detection.
Support Ongoing Compliance Audits
Security audits should happen regularly within your business, and ISACA recommends performing several a year. Proactive internal audits can prepare for more regimented government audits, and a virtual CISO can guide your business to the frequency that makes sense for you.
Adapting to Evolving Threat Landscapes
The cybersecurity landscape strengthens and changes every year. A virtual CISO guides your business through new thread vectors you might not even be aware of, like artificial intelligence-powered data breaches. While they advise other companies, virtual CISOs can stay on the pulse of evolving threat landscapes and build your security posture proactively to combat the latest threats.
A virtual CISO has clear advantages and benefits, but how do you know it’s the right choice for your organization?
How Do You Determine Which Cybersecurity Approach Is Best for Your Organization?
Cybersecurity is extremely multifaceted, and luckily, there are different options based on your organization’s size, resources, budget, and needs.
Assessing Your Organization’s Needs and Resources
To determine if you should hire a virtual CISO, assess your organization’s needs and resources. Do you have the budget for a full-time security leader? Is cybersecurity your company’s biggest priority, with tons of new projects and initiatives? You might need a full-time CISO if you fit those perimeters, but if you are constrained when it comes to budget and resources and you’re looking for a cost-effective, flexible solution, a virtual CISO might be a better choice.
Evaluating the Pros and Cons of Different CISO Models
Time, number of projects, and the size of your existing security team and program also make a difference. If you’re not ready to fully invest in a high-level executive but still want expert guidance who understands your business, a virtual CISO can bridge that gap until you’re ready for more support.
Factors to Consider When Making a Decision
The biggest factors in hiring a virtual CISO boil down to budget, needs, resources, goals, and the state of your existing security program. For larger enterprises with a vast number of employees and customers, you might need a full-time executive, especially if you’re implementing tons of new security networks, procedures and programs.
Hiring a Virtual CISO
The right cybersecurity leadership can make or break your foundational infrastructure and can be business-changing in a true crisis. Virtual CISO roles have grown in popularity due to the rise in advanced cybercrime and the increasing importance of strong security posture. Key benefits include cost effectiveness, access to specialized expertise, and flexible services depending on projects and initiatives.
Our on-demand webinar showcases the importance of a comprehensive penetration test – beyond simply meeting compliance requirements – through a live network attack simulation.
Data breaches and ransomware attacks threaten financial stability and customer trust that could impact your organization for years to come. Our Cybersecurity experts can help you address your most pressing cybersecurity issues and keep compliance a continuous commitment at your organization. Let’s Talk
