What Does Proactive Vendor Security Mean?

By the Whistic Team

As an InfoSec professional, you have probably heard the term “proactive vendor security” tossed around. But what exactly does proactive vendor security mean?

Looking for a deeper meaning

On the surface, proactive is the opposite of reactive. Instead of waiting around for issues, hacks, or vulnerabilities in a vendor risk management workflow, security teams can take precautionary steps to prevent these kinds of problems from occurring in the first place. With the right technology, processes, and attention to detail, InfoSec and data security management professionals can be confident in their risk management process instead of worrying that a data breach is imminent.

Pillars of proactive vendor security

Let’s take a look at the six pillars of proactive vendor security:

1. On Demand: Modern vendor security shouldn’t be shrouded in mystery. Proactive vendor risk management should be easily accessible by your internal team, vendors, and customers.
2. Trust: The world of vendor security is notoriously reputation-driven. After all, all it takes is one data breach to lose the trust of customers and vendors. With a proactive workflow in place, your team can establish trust in the market.
3. Transparent: From assessments to questionnaires to forms, vendor security requires a substantial amount of content and documentation. Proactive security teams openly share these requirements and profiles with vendors to make it easier to partner.
4. Control: Proactive vendor security is all about flexibility and openness. It’s vital to have control over what is published, what can be changed or updated, and who has access to your data.
5. Dynamic: If there is one thing that the last few years have taught us in the InfoSec world, it’s that things continually evolve and grow. Proactive risk management should be able to grow with these changes through a dynamic, evolving security posture.
6. Intelligent: As with any industry, having access to vendor risk management data is only the tip of the iceberg. Proactive InfoSec teams can leverage security and privacy data to gain additional insights, make informed decisions, and confidently work with customers.

Getting started

Proactive vendor security shouldn’t be intimidating. Whether you’re a buyer looking to better assess vendors or a seller looking to eliminate unnecessary workflows and tedious security questionnaires, proactive risk management is possible.