Food Distributor Successfully Updates Cybersecurity Posture and Protects its Secret Sauce

UPSTACK provides a security roadmap to lead the company to its goal of qualifying for cybersecurity insurance.

Summary

A global food distributor lacked a robust cyber security plan, leading to concerns about the enterprise security posture and a denial of cybersecurity insurance coverage. The UPSTACK team helped the distributor with planning, sourcing, and negotiating pricing with a preferred managed IT and security services provider which developed a comprehensive security roadmap.

The Challenge

The global food distributor with locations in the U.S. West and Midwest lacked a robust cyber security plan and was denied cyber insurance. With a thriving food distribution service and coveted recipes to keep secure, the global CEO was very concerned about the potential for an attack on the network or a phishing campaign, but had been unsuccessful in implementing a comprehensive cybersecurity posture. With their small IT team focused on other areas, the company did not have the resources or time to address the areas that needed to be improved upon.

The company was missing and needed help identifying and implementing:

• Cybersecurity training for employees
• Email security
• Multi-factor authentication
• Up-to-date security products

The Approach and Solution

To help the client improve their security posture and qualify for cybersecurity insurance, UPSTACK Partners Daniel Mocny and UPSTACK Partner & Managing Director Frank Ferdowsian worked with their IT team and CFO to understand the company’s concerns, roadblocks, technology landscape, and budget. With their experience working with cybersecurity suppliers, they managed the research, evaluated the solutions, negotiated pricing, and provided their recommendation of two excellent cybersecurity suppliers who could help the client achieve their goals.

Daniel and Frank successfully helped the client further negotiate pricing with the chosen supplier. The solution included a robust security assessment leading to a security roadmap with an implementation plan to successfully upgrade their systems and train employees.

The Outcome

As a result of a more robust security posture, the company was not only able to qualify for cybersecurity insurance, but also save an estimated $100,000-120,000 per year on IT security support, reduce the threat of being hacked, and better protect their valuable recipes.