Cybersecurity Assessments & Compliance

The NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) is a voluntary framework developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology to help organizations manage and reduce cybersecurity risk. It consists of five core functions: Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. The framework provides a common language for understanding, managing, and expressing cybersecurity risk to internal and external stakeholders. It is widely adopted across industries and is often required for government contractors and critical infrastructure organizations.

FedRAMP (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program) is a government-wide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment for cloud services used by federal agencies. CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification) is specifically designed for the defense industrial base to protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). While FedRAMP focuses on cloud service providers serving federal agencies, CMMC applies to all contractors in the DoD supply chain. Organizations may need both certifications depending on their customer base and the type of data they handle.

TISAX (Trusted Information Security Assessment Exchange) is an information security assessment standard developed specifically for the automotive industry. It is managed by the ENX Association and based on the VDA Information Security Assessment (ISA). TISAX is required for companies that want to do business with major automotive manufacturers (OEMs) and Tier 1 suppliers. It covers information security, prototype protection, and data protection requirements. TISAX assessments are valid for three years and results can be shared with business partners through the ENX portal.

DORA (Digital Operational Resilience Act) is an EU regulation that establishes a comprehensive framework for digital operational resilience in the financial sector. It applies to banks, insurance companies, investment firms, payment service providers, crypto-asset service providers, and critical ICT third-party service providers. DORA requires organizations to implement robust ICT risk management, incident reporting, digital operational resilience testing, and third-party risk management. The regulation became applicable in January 2025 and organizations must demonstrate compliance through regular assessments.

NIS2 (Network and Information Security Directive 2) is an updated EU directive that significantly expands the scope and requirements of the original NIS Directive. NIS2 covers more sectors including energy, transport, banking, health, digital infrastructure, public administration, and space. It introduces stricter security requirements, enhanced incident reporting obligations, supply chain security requirements, and significant penalties for non-compliance. NIS2 also introduces personal liability for management and requires organizations to implement comprehensive cybersecurity risk management measures.

Assessment timelines vary based on the framework, organization size, technology complexity, and current security maturity. NIST CSF assessments typically take 2-4 months, FedRAMP authorization 6-18 months depending on impact level, CMMC assessments 2-6 months, TISAX assessments 2-4 months, and CSA STAR certification 2-4 months. Organizations pursuing compliance for the first time may need additional time for gap assessment, remediation, and formal validation. We provide detailed timelines during the scoping process.

Penetration testing is a simulated cyber attack against your systems to identify vulnerabilities before malicious actors can exploit them. It includes application testing, network testing, mobile testing, cloud testing, IoT testing, and red teaming exercises. Penetration testing is important because it provides real-world validation of your security controls, identifies vulnerabilities that automated tools may miss, tests your incident response capabilities, and satisfies compliance requirements for many frameworks including PCI DSS, HIPAA, and SOC 2.

Yes, many organizations combine multiple cybersecurity assessments to maximize efficiency and reduce costs. ISO 27001 certification often provides a strong foundation for other frameworks. Organizations can coordinate NIST, CMMC, TISAX, and other assessments to leverage shared evidence, common controls, and unified security governance. Our team helps coordinate multiple assessments to reduce overall timeline and cost while ensuring comprehensive compliance across all required frameworks.

Required documentation typically includes security policies and procedures, risk assessments, system security plans, incident response plans, business continuity plans, access control documentation, network diagrams, data flow diagrams, vulnerability scan results, penetration test reports, security awareness training records, and evidence of control implementation. We help you identify required documentation and develop missing policies and procedures as part of the assessment process.

Cybersecurity compliance is an ongoing process. After initial certification, organizations must maintain security controls, conduct regular assessments, update documentation as systems change, monitor for security incidents, and ensure ongoing compliance with evolving requirements. Most frameworks require annual reassessment, continuous monitoring, or periodic recertification. We provide ongoing support to help you maintain compliance, address changes in requirements, and prepare for reassessment.