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Virtual CISO services

A trusted vCISO service. Simplify & accelerate security, compliance, and risk management

Immediate and cost effective access to experienced cybersecurity leadership, without the cost and commitment of a full-time hire.

vCISO packages from
£2,495 / month

Only pay for the days you actually need, with the flexibility to add more if required at short notice.

CyberKainos vCISO. Experienced cybersecurity leadership

Immediate and cost effective access to experienced cybersecurity leadership

A Virtual CISO service (vCISO) takes all the risk out of a high-cost, full time hire. Full time CISOs are expensive and hard to find, especially for SMBs.

But the truth is while all organisations require cybersecurity leadership to oversee strategy, compliance, third-party risk, and incident response preparation, they do not need to pay for this experience on a full-time basis.

The role of your virtual CISO

A CyberKainos vCISO is a highly experienced and impartial information security professional who will become an integral part of your team. Available immediately, they will be your ongoing point of contact for strategic leadership and executing strategy. They will use a combination of their experience and our data insights to guide you through the complex regulatory cyber risk landscape, look objectively at your risks, and act as a mentor and trainer for your existing teams.

Speak to a vCISO

Complete the form below to speak to a CyberKainos vCISO about strengthening your cybersecurity strategy.

Name
Trusted by leading organisations
NorgineExide TechnologiesWilton ParkPressacBabbleVoxmindNorwich Finance Technology
Finance & Banking/Healthcare/Retail/Insurance/Pharmaceuticals/Critical Infrastructure/Legal/Technology & SaaS
Why a vCISO

A CyberKainos vCISO provides cybersecurity leadership and business resilience assurance

They will get to know your business, understand your current operations and objectives to create a business that is resilient to cyber threats and continuously aligned to key regulatory frameworks.

Risk assessments
29%

Just 29% of UK businesses conduct regular cybersecurity and supplier risk assessments

Board representation
27%

Just 27% of UK businesses say they have a board member responsible for cybersecurity.

Certification
34%

34% of organisations have reported losing business due to a missing certification.

Our approach

A CyberKainos vCISO owns the responsibility for ensuring business resilience and continuity through:

01Governance, Riskand Compliance02Attack SurfaceManagement03Third-Party RiskMonitoring04Incident ResponsePreparation
01

Governance, Risk and Compliance

  • Clear security governance and board-level reporting, owned by an experienced vCISO who acts as your dedicated point of contact
  • Automated checks and gap analysis against all target frameworks and standards, with teams notified if anything falls out of compliance for rapid remediation
  • Tasks cross-mapped across multiple frameworks to eliminate duplicate work, with real-time dashboards replacing spreadsheets and shared drives
02

Attack Surface Management

  • Continuous discovery of your internet-facing assets, so nothing exposed goes unnoticed; unknown SaaS, subsidiaries, forgotten infrastructure, shadow IT, and everything in between
  • Vulnerabilities prioritised by actual risk and tackled through a clear patch management programme
  • Instant alerts when a threat to your organisation is detected, so attacks are stopped before they happen
03

Third-Party Risk Monitoring

  • Create a critical supplier register, with immediate visibility on outstanding requirements, questionnaires, and next review dates and actions
  • Automatically calculate assessment scores against your set criteria and use questionnaire templates from our extensive library rather than creating them from scratch.
  • Give your suppliers access to their results, empowering them to proactively address their issues... before they become your issues
04

Incident Response Preparation

  • Incident response plans built, documented, and stress tested, so your people and processes are ready when they are needed to help you isolate, contain, and recover
  • Clearly define roles, escalation paths, and communication, so everyone knows what to do in the critical first hours of an incident
  • Lessons learned from simulation exercises fed back into your controls to continually strengthen business resilience and continuity
Strategic and operational wins

You can expect to see these strategic and operational wins with a vCISO service:

✓Your incident response plans stress tested so when they are needed your people and processes are ready
✓The correct implementation of policies relating to cybersecurity controls, infrastructure management, and data handling to help your compliance journey
✓You will possess an internal team that has benefited from highly experienced coaching and mentorship
✓Comprehensive real time view of the risks that exist across your supply chain to reduce the chance of inheriting them
✓You will possess a comprehensive vulnerability scanning and patch management program
✓Engagement with your cyber insurance provider to ensure you are getting value for money from your policy based on the improvements that have been made
Meet the team

Meet the CyberKainos vCISO team

Leadership team →
Nick Prescot, Founder / Lead CISO
Founder / Lead CISO

Nick Prescot

Nick is the founding lead consultant at CyberKainos, and brings over 15 years of cybersecurity experience to the business. His path into cyber began while serving in the British Army, where he developed a keen appreciation for operational discipline and strategic thinking. He has since worked with countless teams as a Principal Security and Senior GRC Consultant, delivering cyber security assessments, analysis, reviews and remediation / improvement strategies for clients around the world, from emerging start-ups to FTSE 100.

As an interim CISO and ‘vCISO’, he has led and managed cyber security teams, and has extensive experience within FCA / PRA regulated entities, e-commerce retailers, and pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Sachin Patel, vCISO Consultant
vCISO Consultant

Sachin Patel

Sachin is a skilled cyber security leader with 20 years of experience in technology, Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC), vCISO services, and enterprise security strategy. He has led security initiatives for leading financial institutions, aligning programmes with ISO 27001 and other standards. His work has covered risk assessments, policy development, vulnerability management, and third-party risk oversight. As a trusted vCISO, he has delivered strategic roadmaps and senior stakeholder reporting, helping organisations enhance resilience and foster a strong, security-aware culture.

FAQs

Hiring a vCISO: FAQs

Can’t find what you’re looking for? Talk to a vCISO.

What is a virtual CISO (vCISO)?

A virtual Chief Information Security Officer (vCISO) is an outsourced cybersecurity leader who provides strategic security guidance, risk management, and compliance oversight on a part-time or flexible basis. A vCISO delivers many of the same responsibilities as a full-time CISO without the cost and commitment of hiring a permanent executive.

What does a vCISO do?

A vCISO helps organisations develop, manage, and improve their cybersecurity program. Typical responsibilities include:

  • Cybersecurity strategy development
  • Risk assessments and risk management
  • Security policy creation
  • Compliance and audit readiness
  • Incident response planning
  • Vendor and third-party risk oversight
  • Executive and board reporting
  • Security awareness and governance
  • Security roadmap planning

Your CyberKainos vCISO will also support you with compliance frameworks, standards, and directives such as Cyber Essentials, DORA, ISO 27001, ISO 42001, SOC 2, PCI DSS, NIST CSF, and GDPR.

How much does hiring a vCISO cost?

While all organisations needs access to experienced cybersecurity leadership, only the very largest need this resource available full time. With prices starting from just £2,495/month, a CyberKainos vCISO service means you only pay for the days you actually need, with the flexibility to add more if required at short notice.

£2,495 / month for our SMB vCISO package can save an organisation over £100,000 a year when compared to hiring a full time CISO on a £150,000 salary and benefits package.

What should businesses look for in a vCISO provider?

When evaluating virtual CISO providers like CyberKainos, organisations should look for:

  • Proven cybersecurity experience at board level
  • Experience with their target compliance frameworks
  • Strong communication and leadership skills
  • A willingness to take the time to mentor and coach members of your existing team
  • Incident response experience
  • Experience in dealing with cyber insurance providers
  • Flexible engagement options

Your CyberKainos vCISO will be able to show examples of their experience in all of the above areas.

Is hiring a vCISO a good idea for startups?

Yes. Many startups use vCISO services to establish their security programs early as they cannot afford GRC blockages when it comes to enabling and scaling sales activity or securing investment.

CyberKainos supports 96 global frameworks and standards through the Aegis Platform including:

INFORMATION SECURITYISO 27001PERSONAL DATA PRIVACYGDPRSERVICE ORG CONTROLSSOC 2HEALTH DATA PROTECTIONHIPAAAI MANAGEMENT SYSTEMSISO 42001UK GOVERNMENT SCHEMECYBERESSENTIALSCYBERSECURITY FRAMEWORKNIST CSF
Prefer to talk?

Speak to one of our vCISOs today.