There was no zero-day exploit. No nation-state attacker. No headline-grabbing malware strain. Just a phishing email. Caught by the SOC. Flagged in the queue. Ignored by an analyst who didn’t bother to dig deeper. The ransomware that followed took less than 48 hours to bring the company to its knees.

Compliance is overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. For vCSOs feeling the pressure, the smartest move is to start with what matters most: Cyber Insurability. Meeting the requirements for cyber insurance gives you a strong baseline, providing protection while addressing fundamental cybersecurity controls. 

Preparing employees to identify a phishing email with a single training is like handing them one arrow to fend off an entire army. While simulated phishing exercises do sharpen awareness, they’re only the beginning.