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We talk about compliance as regulations that companies adhere to when working together, but compliance is rarely more important than when supporting government agencies, whether local, state, or federal.
BeyondTrust – an IT vendor for federal government agencies including the Treasury Department – recently learned that lesson the hard way when they inadvertently allowed malicious actors into their software, potentially threatening end users at the Treasury Department.
The Treasury Department immediately took its BeyondTrust service offline and the company claims to have identified and patched its security gap, though the damage may already be done. Further reports on the BeyondTrust incident indicate that threat actors specifically targeted the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) as well as the Office of the Treasury Secretary. Both offices handle sensitive information related to United States national security that threat actors would like to access.
The Compliance Connection
Government agencies have strict compliance requirements and expectations for their vendors and the BeyondTrust incident illustrates why. Certifications like SOC 2 and FedRAMP don’t just assure agencies that they’re choosing best-in-class vendors; they detect and prevent threat actors from accessing customer systems. Few customer systems could be as important as the government’s which impact hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of citizens daily. Compliant vendors are also best positioned to secure new business – private or public – when a compliance lapse jeopardizes an existing business relationship.
Protecting Against Foreign Threats
A popular misconception underscored by the BeyondTrust incident is that compliance is only locally relevant and only protects companies from domestic vulnerabilities and risk scenarios. The threat actors attempting to access the Treasury Department were not from the United States; trust management and compliance have cemented themselves as matters of national security because of incidents like this one.
From BeyondTrust to Trust Management
The BeyondTrust breach is a reminder of why public and private organizations alike prefer and partner with compliant companies, especially when end-user data is remotely involved. SOC 2, HIPPA, FedRAMP, and other popular compliance frameworks don’t just help companies grow quicker and aid in managing complex contract requirements; they prevent security incidents that undermine trust and commercial success. That’s why trust management tools like Koop’s – which consolidate compliance, business insurance, and security solutions into a single platform – are increasingly popular with technology startups facing complex contractual requirements.
Koop’s trust management platform helps tech companies seamlessly navigate the complexities of business insurance, regulatory compliance, and security automation in one place.
We provide a comprehensive suite of insurance coverage that includes General Liability, Technology Errors & Omissions, Cyber Liability, and Management Liability coupled with the most cost-effective SOC 2 compliance certification on the market.
Ready to learn more? Visit our website or drop us a note at hello@koop.ai.
