Don’t let cyber risk erode what the deal is worth.
Cybersecurity incidents continue to erode Portfolio Company profitability and can be a significant distraction from primary business objectives. CFGI’s cybersecurity team partners with Private Equity and corporate acquirers across the full deal lifecycle, from buy-side due diligence through the holding period to pre-exit readiness, drawing on top-tier consulting experience and a practical, operational mindset.
Three ways inadequate cyber diligence derails deals and destroys value.
With cybersecurity consistently in the top three considerations for enterprise risk, it must be a key requirement in any M&A or ongoing Portfolio Company management. Private Equity should understand the inherent risk of a cyber incident to their target acquisition, assess cyber posture, and ensure proper cyber management throughout the holding period.
Cyber risks inherited at acquisition
Cyber adversaries target M&A targets as the path of least resistance to traversing to parent organisations and causing disruption at critical times to maximise damage and ransomware payouts. Cyber due diligence must be part of any acquisition to identify posture gaps or indicators of compromise.
Value creation eroded during the holding period
Like all victims of cyber incidents, attacks can reduce revenue, increase costs, and distract senior management from broader business initiatives. PE firms must ensure proper cyber management of PortCos throughout the holding period to drive value creation rather than erode it.
Deals derailed at exit
As more organisations include cyber due diligence as a key consideration in acquisition, those looking to be acquired or PE sponsors looking to exit must assess security posture in ample time prior. Failure to do so can result in reduced asking prices or significant delays to the deal.
Liability and cost inherited by the acquirer
Acquiring an organisation with poor cyber posture has direct negative impacts. At best this results in significant transformation efforts and Capex and Opex expenditure to align posture before integration. At worst, the acquirer inherits significant enterprise risk from an already-compromised target.
A full service menu across the deal lifecycle.
CFGI offers a range of cyber products based on client need and stage of the lifecycle. Engagements scale from a light-touch Red Flags Review through full Portfolio Cyber Maturity Programs and interim CISO roles, sized to the moment and the mandate.
Buy-Side Due Diligence
- Cyber Red Flags Review (1 week)
- Rapid Cyber Due Diligence (2–3 weeks)
- Cyber Vendor Validation (4–6 weeks)
- Post-Acquisition Assessment (3–4 weeks)
Portfolio Management
- Ongoing Portfolio Assessment
- Cyber Value Creation
- Strategic Cyber Advisory
- Interim Roles (CISO, DPO)
Sell-Side Due Diligence
- Pre-Divestiture Assessment (3–4 weeks)
- Sell-Side Due Diligence Support (2–3 weeks)
- Carve-outs
Assess
- Cyber Risk Quantification
- Maturity Assessments & Due Diligence
- InfoSec Regulation Compliance Analysis
- Penetration Testing
- Incident Response Tabletops
Transform
- Cyber Strategy and Roadmaps
- Secure Architecture and Implementation
- Cyber Posture Improvement
- Regulatory Alignment
- Cyber Insurance Optimisation
Manage
- Virtual CISO and DPO Office
- Third Party Risk Management
- Security Education and Awareness
- Incident Management
- Threat Intelligence and Monitoring
Cyber Red Flags Review
A light-touch assessment to identify critical cyber risks that could have significant consequences to the deal. This baseline should be included as the minimum as part of any acquisition.
Typical timeline: 1 week. Scoping, dark web search, external attack surface analysis, information request review, and a findings summary delivered to deal team leadership.
Expert Access
A call with a CFGI Cyber SME on whatever is on the team’s mind: deal-stage cyber risk, portfolio posture, CISO interim needs, or regulatory requirements across US and European jurisdictions.
Best for: deal teams and PE operations professionals who want a rapid credibility-building conversation before scoping a formal engagement.
Rapid Cyber Due Diligence
A rapid cyber assessment that integrates with the broader due diligence process. Provides a light-touch view of the target’s cyber posture and the expenditure and effort required for transformation to industry or acquirer standard.
Typical timeline: 2–3 weeks. Output: assessment report presented to senior stakeholders with posture summary, gaps, recommendations, roadmap, and high-level costings.
Top-tier pedigree. Boutique speed. No audit restrictions.
CFGI’s cyber team is drawn from top-tier consulting firms and industry experts, combining strategic knowledge and a practical mindset alongside the client-centric attitude of a boutique firm. The team has successfully led complex security programmes and advised some of the largest organisations in the USA and Europe.
Assess, transform, and manage at the speed of the deal.
- Flexible approachIn the dynamic process of acquisition, CFGI Cyber has strong experience adapting to client requirements and delivering high-quality output rapidly, without the overhead of legacy competitors.
- Operational mindsetAn experienced team with strong industry backgrounds providing practical, appropriate recommendations to reduce risk exposure, not theoretical frameworks disconnected from the business.
- Better valueIn a market crowded by legacy competitors, CFGI Cyber provides competitive value alongside high-quality, tailored output that fits the pace and structure of PE deal processes.
- USA and European coverageDedicated practitioners in Chicago and London with experience across US, UK, and EU regulatory environments, including NIST, DORA, NIS 2, SEC Cybersecurity Rules, GDPR, HIPAA, and CMMC.
- No audit restrictionsIndependent advisory support without audit-firm independence constraints. CFGI moves at the speed of the business and the deal.
Six situations where inadequate cyber diligence costs the most.
Buy-side: acquiring a compromised or low-posture target
Risk of acquiring organisations that have a low cyber posture or that have already been compromised. The acquirer inherits liability and remediation costs, or in extreme cases inherits an active incident that disrupts operations post-close.
Sell-side: cyber incidents identified pre or post acquisition
Low cyber posture or a cyber incident identified during buyer due diligence can result in significant delays to the deal or a material reduction in the asking price. Senior management can also be held liable for misrepresentations made during the process.
Holding period: PortCos without adequate cyber management
Cyber adversaries target portfolio companies as the path of least resistance to traversing to the parent fund. Without a structured cyber maturity programme during the holding period, attacks erode revenue, increase costs, and distract management from value creation.
No cyber strategy aligned to the deal or fund timeline
Cyber work scoped too late, too narrowly, or without coordination with the broader transaction workstream misses the risk windows that matter most. Entry, holding, and exit each require different interventions, run to different timelines, and require different output formats.
Regulatory and compliance exposure across jurisdictions
Regulatory requirements related to cybersecurity and data privacy continue to expand, including DORA, NIS 2, SEC Cybersecurity Rules, GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, HIPAA, and CMMC. Failure to comply has direct consequences and can affect deal timing, price, and post-close obligations.
No interim CISO capacity during transition
Carve-outs, post-merger integrations, and management changes frequently leave a gap in CISO-level leadership at exactly the time cyber risk is highest. CFGI provides interim CISO and DPO roles to bridge the gap and lead BAU and transformation activities while permanent resources are identified and onboarded.
A structured three-phase approach to PortCo cyber readiness.
PortCo cyber management for a Mega-Cap Private Equity firm.
Portfolio cyber maturity programme
Mega-Cap PE · Phased Assessment & vCISO AdvisoryRequirement
A Mega-Cap Private Equity firm required an agile cyber consultancy to lead its engagement with Portfolio Companies on cybersecurity. The firm required new PortCos to be assessed and existing PortCos brought into a new framework, with a range of assessments undertaken. Once onboarded, the firm required regular touchpoints with each PortCo to track and guide cyber posture improvement and risk reduction.
Action taken
CFGI conducted multi-stage assessments with deep-dives into core areas of cybersecurity and provided risk-optimised recommendations to drive value creation during the holding period. CFGI managed a portfolio-wide view of cyber risk using a best-class Cyber Risk Quantification platform, identifying outliers that pose outsized risk to the portfolio. CFGI also provided vCISO advisory to PortCos on a regular basis to guide optimal decision-making about cyber transformation and BAU activities.
Outcomes
- Strategic direction to PortCos enabled risk-based and cost-effective remediation measures based on organisational context and probable cyber threats.
- Sizeable reduction in portfolio cyber risk delivered alongside value creation for the Private Equity firm.
- Portfolio-wide dashboard giving consolidated and individual PortCo risk and remediation progress views to fund management.
Talk to CFGI’s Cybersecurity leaders.
Lama Abu-Amara
Partner, Cybersecurity
11+ years in global Cybersecurity Governance, Risk & Compliance. Experience spanning NIST CSF, SEC Cybersecurity Rules, CMMC, PCI DSS, HIPAA, GDPR, and CCPA/CPRA. Previously led the global Cybersecurity GRC team at W.W. Grainger, Inc. across North America, Asia, and Europe.
Ninad Purohit
Partner | Cybersecurity Practice Lead
18+ years across leadership roles in cybersecurity, specialising in building and managing cybersecurity operations. Previously Senior Director at Capgemini, where he founded their offshore security practice in India and built two Security Operations Centers with a team of 350 analysts.
Ready to put cyber on the deal agenda?
Start with a Cyber Red Flags Review, an Expert Access call, or a Rapid Cyber Due Diligence. The same experienced team covers buy-side, holding period, and sell-side, sized to the stage of the deal.