Why it's best to bring in an outside partner to do a security audit

One of the more underlooked aspects of the industrial revolution was the shift toward greater specialization within economies. Workers began to specialize in one aspect of the production of goods, allowing them to become more efficient and productive, which in turn made the business more productive (and more profitable).

Today, that specialization exists within the many lines of business that make up an enterprise organization, as workers generally only work within their own departments—marketing, HR, sales and many others. And while this specialization is a vital part of the modern economy, it has some drawbacks—specifically, workers end up having a much less holistic view of an organization, since they are only involved with one aspect of it.

It falls on senior leadership to understand how all of the individual parts fit together, but this is often a challenge for a variety of reasons. Often, needed and necessary information is siloed within a specific department or group within the organization, impeding the decision-making process. Personal biases and office politics can rear their ugly head, getting in the way of making the right business decisions. And many leaders often feel a sense of ownership over departments or projects they oversee, which can—even unconsciously—affect the results of an audit.

Bringing in an external partner means you get a wholly unbiased and fair look at your entire organization. Their intent is to help you achieve your business goals and improve the business—and because they don’t have skin in the game, you can trust that their recommendations are in line with those goals.

It seems as though every few weeks, there’s a new data breach in the news. The Identity Theft Resource Center estimates that data breaches are up nearly 20 percent² from 2015 alone, and that in just the first five months of the year, more than 11 million records³ have been exposed to hackers.

But data breaches aren’t the only threat to your organization. Risk and compliance is also a huge potential vulnerability that could cost you millions. According to Thomson Reuters, there were more than 50,000 regulatory and compliance updates⁴ in 2015, and if your organization isn’t up to date on all of them, you could find yourself on the wrong side of the law. The potential results: significant fines, a big loss of brand equity and reputation, and even prison time in egregious cases.

Maintaining a strong security posture has never been more important, and you can’t afford to leave it to chance. The right partner can provide you the peace of mind that your data security strategy is sound, your potential risk is low, and that you’re in compliance with all applicable regulations—and you just can’t put a price on that.