What is a CISO as a service (CISOaaS)?
CISO as a service, or CISOaaS, is the outsourcing of CISO (chief information security officer) and information security leadership responsibilities to a third-party provider. By hiring a third-party provider to manage its security program remotely, an organization gains access to staff and resources that it does not have in-house, enabling it to better keep up with information security and compliance demands.
CISOaaS is often paid for on a subscription or per-use basis, like many anything as a service (XaaS) models. Also like many XaaS models, CISOaaS offerings can be entirely remote or a hybrid model in which the provider's experts work with an organization's existing security team both remotely and on-site.
Strong security leadership is important in the modern organization, as digital transformation increases an organization's overall breadth of vulnerabilities. An industrywide cybersecurity skills shortage means that affordable, skilled security leaders are hard to find and easy to lose. High stress levels also fuel CISO turnover, leading many to bounce from organization to organization. CISOaaS can help alleviate potential staffing problems by providing organizations with access to cost-efficient security leadership on an as-needed basis.
CISOaaS is also referred to as a virtual CISO (vCISO).
What are the benefits of employing CISO as a service?
Using a virtual CISO comes with both pros and cons. The potential benefits of using CISOaaS include the following:
- Flexibility. CISOaaS platforms are typically flexible, enabling organizations to customize and scale the service to their specific needs.
- Unbiased analysis. As an external third party, CISOaaS platforms can enable the vCISO to evaluate an organization's existing security program more objectively than internal employees might.
- Cost-effectiveness. Pay-as-you-go pricing lets organizations pay for only the time and services they use. A CISOaaS platform is usually less expensive than having a salaried CISO in-house and saves on capital expenditures.
- On-demand service. Using a service provider ensures constant availability of security resources. As demands change, organizations can alter their services accordingly.
- Long- and short-term benefits. In the short term, CISOaaS can make organizations more secure by identifying immediate risks and introducing or tightening controls. In the long term, it can help lay the groundwork for a future in-house security program through training and improvement of core processes and infrastructure.
- Experience. CISOaaS provides organizations with access to a team of experienced cybersecurity professionals who have extensive experience working with a wide array of diverse organizations.
One disadvantage of hiring a vCISO is that they likely will be serving other organizations as well. This could potentially lead to problems with loyalty, timely responses and risk ownership if a breach occurs. An in-house CISO is a better option for organizations that need an employee with no other external commitments.
Do you need CISO as a service?
Any organization without an in-house CISO could consider CISOaaS a viable option. The following are several scenarios in which CISOaaS can be used:
- Limited budgets. Startups without the resources to hire full-time CISOs can use CISOaaS for its expertise and cost-effectiveness.
- Temporary role gaps. Organizations looking for new permanent CISOs can temporarily hire a CISOaaS provider to fill the gap.
- Compliance deadlines. Companies under pressure to meet security or compliance goals can benefit from the on-demand nature of CISOaaS.
- Security programs. Those looking to upgrade their cybersecurity programs can seek the third-party expertise of CISOaaS.
- Lean IT environments. Businesses that use lean IT principles can temporarily employ CISOaaS rather than investing in a full-time position.
- Long-term security practices. An organization that wants to lay the foundation for a new, long-term program but lacks a permanent security team can get started with CISOaaS.
What to expect from CISO as a service
The CISOaaS provider has most of the same responsibilities as an in-house CISO. These include the following:
- Data protection. A CISOaaS protects the confidentiality, integration and availability of data.
- Cybersecurity. A CISOaaS provider develops a long-term cybersecurity strategy that aligns with the organization's objectives.
- Governance, risk and compliance. A CISOaaS provider develops a governance, risk and compliance program and ensures continued compliance with relevant laws or industry regulations.
- Risk assessments and risk management. A CISOaaS provider conducts continual risk assessments to find potential threats and vulnerabilities and implements ways to manage them.
- Security oversight. A CISOaaS provider develops, monitors and reports on security, business and communication operations and practices.
- Management of personnel and vendor relationships. A CISOaaS provider tracks vendor integrations and manages other third-party security services.
- Metrics and reporting. A CISOaaS provider defines key performance indicators to measure security program effectiveness.
CISOaaS providers serve multiple businesses simultaneously. A vCISO must therefore have good people skills and be able to adapt to, understand and meet each customer's unique needs.
CISO as a service vs. full-time CISO
A traditional CISO is a senior-level executive responsible for developing and implementing an information security program. They work full-time within a company, helping to steer their organization's security efforts. This role is intended to fulfill continuous leadership for in-house cybersecurity.
A vCISO, offered through a CISOaaS offering, however, is an external entity. The idea of CISO as a service is to outsource the role to a qualified third party. Instead of hiring a full-time employee to fill the role in a traditional manner, a CISOaaS provider often works in a more flexible manner. They might work part-time, act as a consultant or work in a hybrid online or in-person manner. They provide the same level of expertise as a traditional full-time CISO but with more flexibility. This is ideal for organizations that do not require or cannot afford a full-time traditional employee to fill the role.
Sometimes vCISOs are hired to implement short-term fixes to security issues; other times, they are hired for longer-term projects, such as developing a company's entire security program.
CISOs are some of the highest-paid professionals in IT security, making it an attractive role. Hiring a vCISO is often drastically less expensive because of its payment model. Because of this, vCISOs are increasingly being used by managed service providers and managed security service providers to deliver services.
5 CISOaaS providers
Although there are numerous CISOaaS offerings, the following is just a sampling:
- Bulletproof. This U.K.-based vCISO service offers modular subscription package options and strongly focuses on Cyber Security Services, Accreditations & Training (CREST) best practices and implementations. CREST is an international not-for-profit cybersecurity industry organization.
- FRSecure. FRSecure is a cybersecurity consulting firm that offers vCISO services that focus on vulnerability management for well-regulated industries.
- Kroll. This cybersecurity and risk management firm is known for its incident response and digital forensics capabilities. The company also offers vCISO services that boast of its skilled experts.
- Integris. Integris is an IT firm that also offers vCISO services. These vCISOs have Certified Information Systems Security Professional -- commonly known as CISSP -- accreditation and are focused on compliance and governance support.
- TechMagic. This CISOaaS provider offers ISO 27001‑certified consultants. It also provides other cybersecurity services, such as threat intelligence and application security as a service.
CISOaaS offerings are usually pay-as-you-go and on-demand models. They are often paid for as a yearly subscription using a retainer. The amount of time the vCISO spends on-site is negotiated, and the retainer is based on a set number of days or hours per year. This varies based on the vendor's offerings and the customer organization's needs.
The CISO role has evolved over time and is offered either in-house or outsourced in an as-a-service model. Learn more about how the chief information security officer role evolved.
