Consolidated ISMS Third Party Vendor and Supply Chain Risk Management checklist.
1. Vendor Identification and Classification
- Compile a list of all existing vendors and suppliers.
- Use internal databases and procurement records for accuracy.
- Include contact details and service descriptions for each vendor.
- Ensure the list is up to date and comprehensive.
- Assess the type of data each vendor can access.
- Categorize vendors as low, medium, or high access.
- Document classifications for future reference.
- Review access levels periodically.
- Create a centralized database to track all vendors.
- Include information on services, contracts, and expiration dates.
- Ensure easy access for relevant stakeholders.
- Regularly update the inventory to reflect changes.
- Analyze how vendor services impact business continuity.
- Identify potential risks associated with vendor failure.
- Rank vendors based on their criticality to operations.
- Document findings for risk assessment.
- Identify the country of operation for each vendor.
- Research local regulations impacting data handling.
- Evaluate risks related to jurisdictional compliance.
- Document regulatory implications for each vendor.
- List all services each vendor offers.
- Determine the relevance of each service to data security.
- Highlight services that handle sensitive information.
- Update the list as services evolve.
- Review financial reports and ratings for each vendor.
- Check for any legal disputes or controversies.
- Consult industry publications for reputation insights.
- Document findings to assess risk.
- Gather records of past performance evaluations.
- Note any breaches, service failures, or compliance issues.
- Assess the impact of historical issues on current risk.
- Maintain a log for ongoing reference.
- Research industry standards for risk assessment criteria.
- Develop a checklist for evaluating vendor risk levels.
- Use criteria to categorize vendors as high-risk.
- Review criteria regularly to ensure relevance.
- Identify applicable regulations for each vendor.
- Evaluate vendor compliance status with documentation.
- Categorize vendors by compliance level.
- Update compliance records as regulations change.
- Schedule meetings with relevant teams to discuss vendors.
- Collect feedback on vendor performance and security risks.
- Document insights and concerns raised by stakeholders.
- Incorporate feedback into vendor assessments.
- Conduct a cybersecurity risk assessment for each vendor.
- Determine the threat level associated with each vendor.
- Categorize vendors as low, medium, or high cybersecurity risk.
- Document classifications for ongoing monitoring.
- Set a schedule for regular reviews of vendor classifications.
- Incorporate new information from assessments and audits.
- Notify relevant stakeholders of classification changes.
- Ensure database reflects the most current information.
2. Risk Assessment
- Collect relevant vendor information.
- Identify assets associated with the vendor.
- Determine risk criteria based on organizational standards.
- Conduct interviews or surveys with key stakeholders.
- Document the assessment process and findings.
- Identify critical business functions affected by the vendor.
- Assess the impact severity on operations and reputation.
- Consider financial, legal, and compliance implications.
- Document potential operational disruptions from vendor risks.
- Communicate findings to relevant stakeholders.
- Review vendor's risk history and management practices.
- Evaluate internal controls and risk mitigation measures.
- Analyze vendor's compliance with industry standards.
- Consult with stakeholders for risk perception.
- Assign a likelihood rating based on assessment.
- Catalog all data types exchanged with the vendor.
- Classify data based on sensitivity and regulatory requirements.
- Document data transfer methods and formats.
- Ensure clarity on data ownership and usage rights.
- Review data management policies.
- Identify applicable regulations based on data handled.
- Review vendor's compliance certifications and audits.
- Assess internal policies against regulatory requirements.
- Document any compliance gaps and remediation plans.
- Engage legal experts for regulatory insights.
- Review vendor financial statements and credit ratings.
- Assess trends in financial performance over time.
- Evaluate potential impacts of financial instability.
- Document findings related to service delivery risks.
- Engage financial analysts if necessary.
- Review vendor's security policies and protocols.
- Evaluate their incident response and management strategies.
- Assess technology infrastructure and data protection measures.
- Check for third-party security certifications (e.g., ISO 27001).
- Document security strengths and weaknesses.
- Gather information on previous security incidents.
- Analyze breach reports for impact and response effectiveness.
- Identify patterns in incident frequency and severity.
- Assess lessons learned from past incidents.
- Document the incident history comprehensively.
- Identify the vendor's physical locations and data centers.
- Assess geopolitical stability and risk factors.
- Evaluate data sovereignty implications for compliance.
- Document location-related risks and considerations.
- Engage geopolitical analysts for insights.
- Map out dependencies on vendor services and resources.
- Identify key services that are critical to operations.
- Assess the risk of vendor failure impacting operations.
- Document potential single points of failure.
- Engage stakeholders for additional insights.
- Conduct interviews or surveys with key stakeholders.
- Gather feedback on vendor performance and relationships.
- Document stakeholder insights and perceptions.
- Analyze feedback for common themes and concerns.
- Share findings with relevant teams for action.
- Request copies of vendor's business continuity plans.
- Assess the robustness of their disaster recovery strategies.
- Evaluate testing frequency and results of recovery plans.
- Document any identified weaknesses in their plans.
- Engage continuity experts for insights.
- Develop a risk matrix to categorize vendors.
- Assign scores based on assessment criteria.
- Prioritize vendors for monitoring and management.
- Document the ranking process and rationale.
- Review rankings with relevant stakeholders.
- Compile all assessment findings into a report.
- Include executive summaries and detailed analyses.
- Share the report with stakeholders for review.
- Obtain formal sign-off from relevant parties.
- Store documentation securely for future reference.
3. Due Diligence
4. Contractual Agreements
5. Security Controls Assessment
- Review the types of security controls in place.
- Determine the effectiveness of these controls.
- Identify any gaps or weaknesses in the controls.
- Document findings for further analysis.
- Check for documented security policies and procedures.
- Assess the training provided to employees.
- Evaluate technical measures like firewalls and encryption.
- Ensure organizational measures support compliance.
- Review the incident response plan documentation.
- Evaluate incident detection and reporting mechanisms.
- Check for communication protocols during incidents.
- Assess post-incident analysis and improvement processes.
- Obtain and analyze audit reports.
- Check for compliance with security standards.
- Evaluate any remediation actions taken post-audit.
- Document findings and recommendations.
- Review user access policies and procedures.
- Evaluate authentication methods used (e.g., MFA).
- Check for role-based access controls.
- Assess the process for granting and revoking access.
- Determine the types of encryption algorithms used.
- Check for proper key management practices.
- Assess encryption implementation for both storage and transmission.
- Evaluate compliance with industry standards.
- Review backup frequency and methods.
- Assess the testing of recovery processes.
- Check for off-site backup storage solutions.
- Evaluate data integrity verification methods.
- Review the security policy documentation.
- Check alignment with relevant regulations.
- Assess the policy's scope and coverage.
- Evaluate the process for policy updates.
- Assess the physical access controls (e.g., badges).
- Review surveillance systems in place.
- Evaluate visitor management procedures.
- Check for environmental controls (e.g., fire, flood).
- Review certifications and compliance documentation.
- Evaluate the vendor's self-assessment results.
- Check for any recent compliance audits.
- Assess the vendor's commitment to ongoing compliance.
- Review the vulnerability management policy.
- Assess the frequency of vulnerability scanning.
- Check for timely patch deployment processes.
- Evaluate the tracking of known vulnerabilities.
- Assess vendor risk management policies.
- Evaluate third-party supplier assessments.
- Check for compliance requirements for suppliers.
- Document any identified supply chain risks.
- Review training materials and content.
- Assess the frequency and effectiveness of training.
- Check for metrics on employee participation.
- Evaluate the process for keeping training current.
- Request penetration test reports.
- Review the scope and methodology used.
- Check for remediation of identified weaknesses.
- Assess the frequency of testing.
- Review threat intelligence sources used.
- Assess the threat response plan.
- Evaluate integration with incident response processes.
- Check for ongoing monitoring of threats.
- Review logging policies and procedures.
- Evaluate the types of events logged.
- Assess monitoring tools and techniques used.
- Check for incident response integration.
- Consider industry-specific risks.
- Evaluate the vendor's business continuity plans.
- Assess the impact of recent security incidents.
- Document any additional findings for review.
6. Monitoring and Auditing
- Identify key performance metrics.
- Set frequency for performance evaluations.
- Assign responsible personnel for oversight.
- Utilize tools for tracking vendor performance.
- Create a reporting mechanism for findings.
- Determine audit frequency based on risk.
- Develop audit checklists aligned with security requirements.
- Assign audit teams with relevant expertise.
- Communicate audit schedules to vendors.
- Ensure audits cover all compliance aspects.
- Record all audit findings comprehensively.
- Categorize findings by severity and risk.
- Define timelines for corrective actions.
- Assign responsibilities for implementing actions.
- Review the effectiveness of corrective measures.
- Identify relevant KPIs related to security and performance.
- Set benchmarks for each KPI.
- Regularly review and update KPIs.
- Communicate KPIs to vendors for transparency.
- Utilize KPIs for performance evaluations.
- Evaluate and select appropriate monitoring tools.
- Configure tools to align with vendor metrics.
- Train personnel on tool usage.
- Establish alerts for critical metrics.
- Review tool performance and adjust settings as necessary.
- Schedule regular risk assessment intervals.
- Utilize frameworks for identifying new threats.
- Engage stakeholders for comprehensive input.
- Adjust monitoring strategies based on assessment results.
- Document changes and rationale for future reference.
- Stay informed on regulatory changes.
- Assess current monitoring criteria against new standards.
- Revise criteria to maintain compliance.
- Communicate updates to relevant teams.
- Ensure training on new criteria for personnel.
- Identify reputable third-party audit firms.
- Define scope and objectives of assessments.
- Schedule audits at regular intervals.
- Review auditor reports thoroughly.
- Incorporate findings into vendor management strategies.
- Schedule regular meetings with vendors.
- Share monitoring results and insights.
- Encourage open dialogue on improvement areas.
- Document feedback and agreed-upon actions.
- Follow up on action items in subsequent meetings.
- Create a centralized repository for records.
- Standardize documentation formats.
- Ensure records are accessible to authorized personnel.
- Regularly review records for completeness.
- Establish retention policies for documentation.
- Define thresholds for escalation.
- Develop a clear communication protocol.
- Specify roles and responsibilities during incidents.
- Document escalation procedures thoroughly.
- Conduct drills to test the escalation process.
- Create a secure portal for data access.
- Ensure data is presented clearly and understandably.
- Set guidelines for data sharing protocols.
- Encourage vendors to provide feedback on data.
- Review data access permissions regularly.
- Establish a review schedule for monitoring tools.
- Collect user feedback on tool effectiveness.
- Analyze monitoring outcomes against objectives.
- Make adjustments based on findings.
- Document changes and rationale for future reference.
Use in Manifestly