A CISO on Your Team — At a Fraction of the Cost
Dedicated security leadership that builds and maintains your compliance and security program.
Schedule a MeetingRegulators and auditors increasingly expect organizations to have a designated security officer — HIPAA expects a Security Officer, the FTC Safeguards Rule requires a Qualified Individual, and CMMC requires a designated security point of contact. Our fractional CISO (vCISO) provides the security leadership your organization needs: building a formal information security program, managing risk, owning security policies, and representing your organization to auditors and regulators — without the $200K+ salary of a full-time hire. We work alongside your leadership team and IT environment to build a security program that is defensible to regulators, practical for your staff, and aligned to your specific compliance frameworks. When a security incident occurs, your vCISO serves as incident commander with a tested response plan and documented notification workflows.
What's Included
Security Program Development
Build a formal information security program from the ground up, tailored to your regulatory requirements.
Risk Management
Ongoing risk assessments, risk register management, and risk treatment planning aligned with your compliance framework.
Policy & Procedure Ownership
Development, maintenance, and enforcement of security policies that satisfy HIPAA, FTC, SOC 2, CMMC, and other frameworks.
Incident Response Leadership
Serve as incident commander during security events with defined escalation procedures and regulatory notification workflows.
Audit & Examiner Liaison
Represent your organization to auditors, regulators, and examiners with confidence and documentation.
Security Awareness Program
Design and manage ongoing security training, phishing simulations, and culture-building initiatives.
Ready to Get Started?
Schedule a meeting to discuss how fractional ciso (vciso) fits your organization.
Schedule a MeetingFrequently Asked Questions
What is a fractional CISO and what do they do?
A fractional CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) provides the security leadership functions of a full-time CISO on a part-time or retainer basis. This includes building and owning the information security program, conducting and overseeing risk assessments, developing security policies, managing the security team or vendor relationships, and representing the organization to auditors and regulators.
Is a CISO required under HIPAA, FTC Safeguards, or CMMC?
HIPAA requires covered entities to designate a Security Officer — not necessarily a CISO, but a person accountable for the security program. The FTC Safeguards Rule requires a Qualified Individual to oversee the information security program. CMMC Level 2 requires a designated point of contact for the security program. A fractional CISO satisfies all of these designations in a single engagement.
How is a vCISO different from a vCIO?
A vCIO focuses on technology strategy — IT investments, roadmaps, budgets, and digital transformation. A vCISO focuses on security strategy — risk management, security program governance, policy ownership, incident response, and compliance oversight. In regulated industries, both functions are important. Katalism offers both services, which can be coordinated through a single engagement team.
What does a vCISO deliver on an ongoing basis?
Monthly or quarterly deliverables typically include a security posture update, risk register review, policy review and update cycle, phishing simulation results and training metrics, and compliance dashboard. Annual deliverables include a formal risk assessment, security program review, and updated incident response plan. Deliverable frequency is adjusted to match your compliance calendar and organizational needs.
Can a vCISO represent our organization during a regulatory audit or OCR investigation?
Yes. One of the highest-value functions of a vCISO is serving as the primary liaison to auditors, regulators, and examiners. We prepare documentation packages, coach your staff on responding to auditor questions, and represent your security program with authority and evidence. Having a designated security leader who can speak credibly about your program is a significant advantage in any regulatory examination.
How quickly can a vCISO engagement get started?
We can typically begin a vCISO engagement within 2–4 weeks of contract execution. Onboarding includes a current-state security assessment, review of existing policies and controls, stakeholder interviews, and identification of the highest-priority gaps. For organizations facing an imminent audit or compliance deadline, we prioritize the most time-sensitive deliverables first.
Official Resources & Standards
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