A Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) is essentially an inventory of the components used to build a software artifact, such as an application. While the concept of tracking an application’s components is not new, its importance has grown in recent years due to the rising threat of software supply chain attacks. One significant example is the SolarWinds attack, which highlighted how threat actors are increasingly targeting vulnerabilities in software components during the delivery process.

The Cyber Essentials assurance scheme is one of the best accreditations you can obtain for improving your organization's cybersecurity posture and reducing the risk of cyberattacks. It offers a robust set of controls you can implement to fortify the security of your data, systems, and other IT assets and build greater trust with your stakeholders.

Technology is always brimming with advancements, and it is more prominent in the financial sector. As financial institutions increasingly rely on digital infrastructure to enhance operations, customer experience, and security, they also face growing challenges in mitigating the risks that come with it, such as cyber threats, system failures, and other operational vulnerabilities.

Unfortunately, it will often take some kind of disaster in the business world before a government takes action to prevent it from happening again. It’s only when significant data breaches happen that states implement compliance laws to avoid mishandling data; in this case, SOX compliance has a similar backstory. In the early 2000s, the collapse of corporate giants Enron, Tyco, and WorldCom exposed flaws in corporate accountability, leading to widespread fraud and massive investor losses.

The second Network and Information Systems Directive (NIS2) will come into effect on 17 October 2024. This is the date by which all EU member states must implement the directive into national law. Not far behind is the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), an EU regulation which came into force on 16 January 2023 but is effective 17 January 2025.

In the last month, the Vanta team launched new features to help you: ‍

Breaches, be they accidental, careless, or malicious, are an inevitability for most companies. Depending on the industry, the consequences could range from something as minor as a little public embarrassment to hefty fines, lawsuits, expensive remediation actions, and loss of customer confidence (and, with that - business). The question is, how can compliance use this to its advantage and get a share of the security budget before something happens?