• Support
  • Login
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Support
  • Login
  • Contact
  • Blog
SecurityScorecard SecurityScorecard
  • Products
    PRODUCTS
    • Security Ratings
      Identify security strengths across ten risk factors.
    • Security Data
      Get actionable, data-based insights.
    • Security Assessments
      Automate security questionnaire exchange.
    • Attack Surface Intelligence
      NEW
      On-demand contextualized global threat intelligence.
    • Automatic Vendor Detection
      Uncover your third and fourth party vendors.
    • Cyber Risk Quantification
      Translate cyber risk into financial impact.
    • Reporting Center
      Streamline cyber risk reporting.
    • SecurityScorecard Marketplace
      Discover and deploy pre-built integrations.
    SERVICES
    • Active Security Services
      Test your security controls.
    • Cyber Risk Intelligence
      Partner to obtain meaningful threat intelligence.
    • Digital Forensics & Incident Response
      Prepare to respond to any threat.
    • Third-Party Risk Management
      Reduce risk across your vendor ecosystem.
    BUY NOW
    • Compare All Plans
      Choose a plan that's right for your business.
    • Try Free Account
      Make informed decisions with confidence.
    • Buy Pro Now
      Add automated event responses.
    • Buy Business Now
      Expand on Pro with vendor management and integrations.
    • Request Enterprise Demo
      See the capabilities of an enterprise plan in action.
    icon__SSClogoMark icon__SSClogoMark

    Understand and reduce risk with SecurityScorecard.

    Free account sign up
  • Solutions
    BY USE CASE
    • Compliance
    • Cyber Insurance
    • Digital Forensics
    • Due Diligence
    • Enterprise Cyber Risk
    • Executive-Level Reporting
    • Incident Response
    • Regulatory Oversight
    • Third-Party Risk
    BY INDUSTRY
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Financial Services
    • Government
    • Healthcare
    • Insurance
    • Retail & Consumer
    • Technology
    Help your organization calculate its risk
    View All Solutions
  • Customers
    OUR CUSTOMERS
    • Customer Overview
      Trusted by companies of all industries and sizes.
    • Peer Reviews
      Find out what our customers are saying.
    SUCCESS AND SUPPORT
    • Customer Success
      Receive award-winning customer service.
    • Support
      Get your questions answered by our experts.
    COMMUNITY
    • SecurityScorecard Connect
      Engage in fun, educational, and rewarding activities.
    • Connect Login
      Join our exclusive online customer community.
    icon__SSClogoMark icon__SSClogoMark
    Understand and reduce risk with SecurityScorecard.
    Free account sign up
  • Partners

    Partner Program Overview

    Partner with SecurityScorecard and leverage our global cybersecurity ratings leadership to expand your solution, deliver more value, and win new business.

    Learn more
    • Locate a Partner
      Access our industry-leading partner network.
    • Value-Added Resellers
      Enter new markets, deliver more value, and get rewarded.
    • Managed Service Providers
      Meet customer needs with cybersecurity ratings.
    • ISAC Partner Program
      Learn more about the industries we support and ISAC member benefits.
    • Technology Alliances
      Access innovative solutions from leading providers.
    • SCORE Portal Login
      Use the SCORE Partner Program to grow your business.
    • SecurityScorecard Marketplace
      Find a trusted solution that extends your SecurityScorecard experience.

    Understand and reduce risk with SecurityScorecard.

    Free account sign up
  • Resources
    RESOURCES
    • Resource Center
      Explore our cybersecurity ebooks, data sheets, webinars, and more.
    • SecurityScorecard Blog
      Read the latest blog posts published weekly.
    • Research & Insights Center
      Access our research on the latest industry trends and sector developments.
    • SecurityScorecard Academy
      NEW
      Complete certification courses and earn industry-recognized badges.
    TOOLS AND DOCUMENTATION
    • Free Security Rating
      Get your free ratings report with customized security score.
    • Product Release Notes
      Visit our support portal for the latest release notes.
    • Free Account Signup
      Start monitoring your cybersecurity posture today.
    • Chrome Extension
      NEW
      Show the security rating of websites you visit.
    • Assessments ROI Calculator
      Calculate the ROI of automating questionnaires.
    Trust begins with transparency. Take a look at the data that drives our ratings.
    Learn more
  • Company

    Working at SecurityScorecard

    Committed to promoting diversity, inclusion, and collaboration–and having fun while doing it.

    Join our team
    • About Us
      SecurityScorecard is the global leader in cybersecurity ratings.
    • Leadership
      Meet the team that is making the world a safer place.
    • Press
      Explore our most recent press releases and coverage.
    • Events
      Join us at any of these upcoming industry events.
    • Policy Insights
      Raising the bar on cybersecurity with security ratings.
    • Careers
      APPLY TODAY
      Come join the SecurityScorecard team!
    • Contact Us
      Contact us with any questions, concerns, or thoughts.
    • Trust Portal
      Take an inside look at the data that drives our technology.
    • Help Center
      We are here to help with any questions or difficulties.
Request a demo
SecurityScorecard SecurityScorecard
  • Support
  • Login
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Support
  • Login
  • Contact
  • Blog
SecurityScorecard SecurityScorecard
  • Products
    PRODUCTS
    • Security Ratings
      Identify security strengths across ten risk factors.
    • Security Data
      Get actionable, data-based insights.
    • Security Assessments
      Automate security questionnaire exchange.
    • Attack Surface Intelligence
      NEW
      On-demand contextualized global threat intelligence.
    • Automatic Vendor Detection
      Uncover your third and fourth party vendors.
    • Cyber Risk Quantification
      Translate cyber risk into financial impact.
    • Reporting Center
      Streamline cyber risk reporting.
    • SecurityScorecard Marketplace
      Discover and deploy pre-built integrations.
    SERVICES
    • Active Security Services
      Test your security controls.
    • Cyber Risk Intelligence
      Partner to obtain meaningful threat intelligence.
    • Digital Forensics & Incident Response
      Prepare to respond to any threat.
    • Third-Party Risk Management
      Reduce risk across your vendor ecosystem.
    BUY NOW
    • Compare All Plans
      Choose a plan that's right for your business.
    • Try Free Account
      Make informed decisions with confidence.
    • Buy Pro Now
      Add automated event responses.
    • Buy Business Now
      Expand on Pro with vendor management and integrations.
    • Request Enterprise Demo
      See the capabilities of an enterprise plan in action.
    icon__SSClogoMark icon__SSClogoMark

    Understand and reduce risk with SecurityScorecard.

    Free account sign up
  • Solutions
    BY USE CASE
    • Compliance
    • Cyber Insurance
    • Digital Forensics
    • Due Diligence
    • Enterprise Cyber Risk
    • Executive-Level Reporting
    • Incident Response
    • Regulatory Oversight
    • Third-Party Risk
    BY INDUSTRY
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Financial Services
    • Government
    • Healthcare
    • Insurance
    • Retail & Consumer
    • Technology
    Help your organization calculate its risk
    View All Solutions
  • Customers
    OUR CUSTOMERS
    • Customer Overview
      Trusted by companies of all industries and sizes.
    • Peer Reviews
      Find out what our customers are saying.
    SUCCESS AND SUPPORT
    • Customer Success
      Receive award-winning customer service.
    • Support
      Get your questions answered by our experts.
    COMMUNITY
    • SecurityScorecard Connect
      Engage in fun, educational, and rewarding activities.
    • Connect Login
      Join our exclusive online customer community.
    icon__SSClogoMark icon__SSClogoMark
    Understand and reduce risk with SecurityScorecard.
    Free account sign up
  • Partners

    Partner Program Overview

    Partner with SecurityScorecard and leverage our global cybersecurity ratings leadership to expand your solution, deliver more value, and win new business.

    Learn more
    • Locate a Partner
      Access our industry-leading partner network.
    • Value-Added Resellers
      Enter new markets, deliver more value, and get rewarded.
    • Managed Service Providers
      Meet customer needs with cybersecurity ratings.
    • ISAC Partner Program
      Learn more about the industries we support and ISAC member benefits.
    • Technology Alliances
      Access innovative solutions from leading providers.
    • SCORE Portal Login
      Use the SCORE Partner Program to grow your business.
    • SecurityScorecard Marketplace
      Find a trusted solution that extends your SecurityScorecard experience.

    Understand and reduce risk with SecurityScorecard.

    Free account sign up
  • Resources
    RESOURCES
    • Resource Center
      Explore our cybersecurity ebooks, data sheets, webinars, and more.
    • SecurityScorecard Blog
      Read the latest blog posts published weekly.
    • Research & Insights Center
      Access our research on the latest industry trends and sector developments.
    • SecurityScorecard Academy
      NEW
      Complete certification courses and earn industry-recognized badges.
    TOOLS AND DOCUMENTATION
    • Free Security Rating
      Get your free ratings report with customized security score.
    • Product Release Notes
      Visit our support portal for the latest release notes.
    • Free Account Signup
      Start monitoring your cybersecurity posture today.
    • Chrome Extension
      NEW
      Show the security rating of websites you visit.
    • Assessments ROI Calculator
      Calculate the ROI of automating questionnaires.
    Trust begins with transparency. Take a look at the data that drives our ratings.
    Learn more
  • Company

    Working at SecurityScorecard

    Committed to promoting diversity, inclusion, and collaboration–and having fun while doing it.

    Join our team
    • About Us
      SecurityScorecard is the global leader in cybersecurity ratings.
    • Leadership
      Meet the team that is making the world a safer place.
    • Press
      Explore our most recent press releases and coverage.
    • Events
      Join us at any of these upcoming industry events.
    • Policy Insights
      Raising the bar on cybersecurity with security ratings.
    • Careers
      APPLY TODAY
      Come join the SecurityScorecard team!
    • Contact Us
      Contact us with any questions, concerns, or thoughts.
    • Trust Portal
      Take an inside look at the data that drives our technology.
    • Help Center
      We are here to help with any questions or difficulties.
Request a demo
SecurityScorecard SecurityScorecard
BLOG

How to Perform an Information Security Gap Analysis

Private: Phoebe Fasulo
05/03/2021

The cyber threat landscape is ever-evolving, and the security controls that worked for your organization yesterday may no longer be sufficient today. Cyberattacks happen every second, and a security breach can result in the loss of clients’ confidential information, potentially leading to financial penalties and a damaged reputation.

An information security gap analysis allows organizations to identify areas of weakness within their network security controls to ensure that the network is robust and effective. The security gap analysis shows you what you should be doing by comparing your actual practices against industry best practices and offers insight into how your organization can put the correct structure and controls in place. You can reap a lot of benefits from performing an information security gap analysis, but only when it’s being done correctly. Let’s take a look at the steps for conducting one:

What is an information security gap analysis?

Information security gap analysis, also called IT security gap analysis, refers to an in-depth review that helps organizations determine the difference between the current state of their information security to specific industry requirements. When you conduct a security gap analysis you understand the status of your cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities in your organization so you can work to close those gaps in your security.

4 steps for conducting an information security gap analysis

To ensure that you can effectively identify the security risks and vulnerabilities in your organization, it is important to correctly conduct a gap analysis. Here are the four steps that are necessary for every information security gap analysis:

1. Select an industry-standard security framework

By selecting an industry-standard security framework, you will have the baseline best practices that you can measure and compare against your own security program. One of the most common frameworks is the ISO/IEC – 27002 standard. This particular framework provides best practices on information security management, covering key security areas such as assessment, access control, physical security, change management, and more.

The ISO standard provides a great framework to compare your security policies and network controls against. However, it’s usually recommended to leverage cybersecurity platforms to evaluate your security plan and ensure that security measures are compliant with industry regulations. The reason being is that cybersecurity platforms have automated tools that can often catch gaps that are not found by people who are with the network on a daily basis.

When you select a cybersecurity platform to carry out an information security assessment for your organization, it typically gathers data on your IT infrastructure, organizational charts, application inventory, policies and processes, and other relevant details. In doing so, it will be able to identify and show you which security policies are already in place, which outdated policies to replace, and what areas to implement them.

2. Evaluate your staff and processes

Many of the risks associated with security breaches are caused by human intervention, such as an employee unknowingly clicking on a phishing email.

Here are some of the typical questions that organizations should ask your key staff members:

  • Do you provide staff training to keep your organization up to date on evolving security threats?
  • Are there standard procedures and approvals required before a change is implemented? More importantly, is there a back-out procedure in case you run into a problem?
  • How do you handle access for new hires and terminations?

When you know exactly how people are accessing your organization’s network and the existing security controls that are in place, the easier it will be for you to execute the right information security analysis.

3. Gather data

The goal of data gathering is to understand how effective your existing security program is operating within the technical architecture. During this step, your organizational controls are being compared to best practice standards (like ISO 27002 and NIST 800-53) and relevant requirements. This allows you to see how your security process matches up to other processes that are proven to be successful. To uncover gaps and vulnerabilities within your organization, take a sample of network devices, servers, and applications. Data gathering will help provide a holistic picture of your technical environment, the security measures that are in place, and your overall security effectiveness.

4. Analyze your security program

The last step is to perform a detailed analysis of your security program. If you choose to work with a cybersecurity platform, it automatically can correlate the findings across all factors to create your IT security profile that includes strengths and areas of weakness where improvements are needed. With that information, the platform can make recommendations for a security plan that is right for your company. The robust security plan should consider cyber risks, staffing, budget requirements, and timeframes to complete security improvements.

How SecurityScorecard can help you perform an information security gap analysis

By leveraging cybersecurity questionnaires, your organization’s IT security team can effectively evaluate the strength of its security program. SecurityScorecard’s Atlas can help you cut your questionnaire cycle in half by providing automated cloud-based questionnaires in a secure and centralized platform. In doing so, you can more easily and efficiently identify gaps in security both for your organizations and third-party vendors.

Additionally, the platform’s Security Ratings enable your organization to be more resilient and continuously monitor the overall health of the IT environment. When the insights gathered from Atlas and Security Ratings, you’ll gain complete visibility into the cybersecurity of your entire IT ecosystem, allowing you to stay better prepared for any future cyberattacks.

Return to Blog
Join us in making the world a safer place.
FREE ACCOUNT SIGN UP
Products
Solutions
Customers
Marketplace
Partners
Resources
Company
Trust Portal
Security Ratings
Login
Blog
Contact
Careers

SecurityScorecard
Tower 49
12 E 49th St
Suite 15-100
New York, NY 10017

[email protected]

United States: (800) 682-1701
International: +1(646) 809-2166
Social-linkedin Social-facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube