Not every organization has the resources to handle every aspect of their cybersecurity operations in-house. Some organizations are in the process of determining what kinds of resources they need. In these scenarios, many enterprises look to outside experts for guidance. These enterprises seek out cybersecurity advisory services — which include assessments, exercises, and recommendations — to help them establish a strong cybersecurity framework.

In this post, we’ll examine these services, highlighting their critical role in modern security.

What are cybersecurity advisory services?

Cybersecurity advisory services encompass high-level guidance and strategic planning to ensure that an organization's cybersecurity measures are comprehensive, current, and effective. Broadly speaking, these services include:

• Security posture and risk assessment
• Security strategy development
• Compliance assessments and recommendations
• Technical security assessments
• … and more

The role of cybersecurity advisory services is crucial. They provide organizations with the necessary insights to navigate the modern threat landscape. With a blend of risk assessment, preventive measures, and response strategies — all supplied by an expert cybersecurity team — an organization can establish resilience against cyberattacks. Advisors have expertise across many cybersecurity domains, tailoring their approach to meet the unique needs of each organization.

It’s important to note that cybersecurity advisory services focus mainly on the strategic — not the operational — aspects of cybersecurity. Strategic guidance moves an organization toward policy formation, framework development, and overall risk management strategies. This is opposed to guidance regarding the day-to-day operations or implementation of security technologies, which is outside the scope of advisory services.

With this foundational understanding in mind, let’s look at three major categories of cybersecurity advisory services: exercises, assessments, and recommendations. We’ll begin with exercises.

Exercises

Cybersecurity exercises are practical tools used to help organizations enhance their preparedness against cyber threats. Often, these exercises are designed to simulate real-world scenarios. That way, teams can practice response strategies and identify vulnerabilities, improving their overall security awareness.

Tabletop exercises

Tabletop exercises involve simulated cyber incident scenarios. These exercises are typically discussion-based sessions where team members brainstorm and plan responses to hypothetical cyber threats. Tabletop exercises help organizations in the following areas:

• Refining communication
• Decision-making processes
• Incident response plans

Adversary emulation exercises

Adversary emulation exercises are designed to test an organization’s defenses against specific types of cyber threats. These exercises mimic the tactics and techniques of real-life attackers so that organizations can identify their vulnerabilities and enhance the overall effectiveness of their security measures.

Red team/blue team exercises

Red team/blue team exercises involve two groups:

1. The red team simulates attackers trying to breach cybersecurity defenses
2. The blue team defends against these attacks

This exercise provides a dynamic environment to test and improve security protocols and team readiness.

Penetration testing

Penetration testing is a proactive approach to identifying vulnerabilities in an organization’s systems and networks. By trying to penetrate a system, this assessment helps uncover weaknesses that could be exploited by cybercriminals. Uncovering these weaknesses — especially within the safety of cybersecurity advisory services — leads to enhanced security measures without any of the impacts of an actual breach.

Assessments

Assessments from cybersecurity advisory services help an organization understand its current security posture so that it can plan for improvements. By providing a comprehensive view of existing vulnerabilities and strengths, these assessments guide strategic enhancements in security infrastructure.

Cybersecurity maturity assessment

A cybersecurity maturity assessment evaluates the overall maturity of an organization's cybersecurity practices. It examines policies, procedures, and technical controls. After this evaluation, the advisor provides insights into areas needing improvement and alignment with best practices.

Cloud security assessment

A cloud security assessment focuses on cloud-based infrastructure, evaluating the security of data and applications hosted in the cloud. This assessment identifies potential vulnerabilities in cloud environments and provides recommendations for securing them.

Active Directory security assessment

An Active Directory (AD) security assessment examines the security of an organization’s use of AD, which is a core component in many organizations' IT infrastructure. This assessment focuses on identifying vulnerabilities in AD configurations, resulting in recommended measures to strengthen AD security.

SOC assessment

A SOC assessment evaluates the effectiveness of an organization’s SOC in detecting, analyzing, and responding to cybersecurity incidents. This assessment provides insights into the SOC's capabilities, identifying areas for improvement.

Technical risk assessment

A technical risk assessment involves analyzing the risks associated with an organization’s technology infrastructure. It identifies potential threats and vulnerabilities, offering strategies to mitigate these risks.

Recommendations

The final major aspect of cybersecurity advisory services is recommendations. Advisory teams present tailored recommendations, which are strategic plans developed to address the specific cybersecurity needs of the organization. The value of these recommendations lies in their ability to transform assessments and exercises into actionable steps.

Recommendations can range from implementing new security technologies to revising existing policies and procedures. The goal of the recommendations is to close any security gaps so that an organization is more resilient against cyber threats and has a better alignment between cybersecurity strategies and business objectives.

It goes without saying that these recommendations are not one-size-fits-all solutions. Instead, they are customized for each organization's unique environment and threat landscape. Advisory services work closely with stakeholders to ensure the recommendations are practical, achievable, and effective.

Looking to CrowdStrike for cybersecurity advisory services

CrowdStrike offers its expert cybersecurity advisory services to organizations that need help. Through exercises like tabletop scenarios, red/blue team engagements, and more, CrowdStrike helps organizations prepare to face modern cyber threats effectively. In addition, CrowdStrike offers a range of assessments — such as cybersecurity maturity, cloud security, AD security, SOC, and technical risk assessments — to help organizations fortify their security posture.

Because the digital threat landscape is broad and many organizations do not have the resources to cover all their cybersecurity bases, they look to cybersecurity advisory services for the strategic foresight and practical steps necessary to build a strong security posture. For more information on how CrowdStrike's advisory services can benefit your organization, visit CrowdStrike Services or contact CrowdStrike today. Or, if you’ve experienced a security breach in your organization, reach out to our breach response team right away.