Days 1–30: establish ownership
Agree critical business priorities, provider responsibilities, evidence needs and the decisions that need a named owner.
Threat-Informed vCISO
Threat-Informed vCISO for SMBs & Defense Contractors
Executive security judgment for organizations that need strategy, risk communication, vendor decisions, and incident readiness—without hiring a full-time CISO. External exposure intelligence keeps the advisory grounded in what may already be visible.
Establish priorities. Then lead the program.
Start with a Cyber Intel Exposure Review and a clear action plan
For businesses that need to establish a baseline first, the Small Business Cybersecurity Assessment & Action Plan — $3,500 combines internal security evidence, business priorities and provider responsibilities with a Cyber Intel Exposure Review.
You receive a written, prioritized roadmap and a leadership walkthrough. That creates the starting point for ongoing threat-informed vCISO work: roadmap ownership, provider accountability, executive risk reporting, incident readiness and recurring intel exposure reviews.
See the $3,500 assessment deliverables · Defense contractor? Explore the CMMC review
How to start ongoing vCISO support
Book a free fit call and share the reason for meeting, your work email and company domains. If you already have a useful assessment or roadmap, bring that context: you can discuss a direct vCISO engagement without purchasing another initial review.
Ongoing vCISO services are scoped and priced separately. The $3,500 price applies to the initial assessment, not a monthly retainer. Before work begins, you approve a proposal covering the meeting cadence, executive reporting, provider coordination, intel exposure reviews, availability, deliverables and price.
Book with FrancoFree 15-minute fit call. External observations guide internal validation; they do not prove compromise or compliance.
What to have ready for your first call
- A brief reason for meeting, such as a customer requirement, CMMC question, security concern or need for ongoing leadership.
- Your company name and work email.
- Your primary website domain and email domain if different. Other relevant company domains are optional.
These details give us a starting point for passive external review and a more focused conversation. The full Cyber Intel Exposure Review and briefing are part of the agreed paid engagement.
Email your meeting context to HostBreach
You can book first and share these details before the call. We arrange an appropriate channel for detailed records after agreeing the review scope.
Days 31–60: drive the roadmap
Coordinate agreed priority actions, track validation and completion evidence, and clarify detection, response and recovery responsibilities.
Days 61–90: review progress
Report decisions and residual risks to leadership, revisit relevant external exposure and set the next operating cycle. Timing depends on agreed scope and client dependencies.
When should a small business hire a vCISO? · Compare vCISO services with a threat-informed buyer guide
Fractional Security Leadership
A senior security advisor who helps leadership decide what matters
A vCISO should do more than maintain a risk register. HostBreach acts as a vendor-neutral advisor for leaders who need experienced judgment across security, compliance, technology, and incident readiness.
- Security strategy and roadmap prioritization.
- Executive and board risk communication.
- Vendor, tool, and service-provider decisions.
- Incident-readiness planning and tabletop facilitation.
- Security policy and governance guidance.
- Compliance alignment where it affects the business.
- Periodic external exposure review to challenge internal assumptions.
Building your response operating model? Use our small business incident response services guide to compare retainers, on-demand support, provider responsibilities, and readiness questions before an emergency.
Threat-Informed vCISO Loop
Leadership context + outside view
BUSINESSmission / budget / tolerance
CONTROL STATEpeople / process / technology
EXTERNAL VIEWwhat deserves validation
DECISIONfix / defer / accept / transfer
Why Threat-Informed
The outside view changes the board conversation
Traditional fractional CISO work can become calendar-driven: quarterly reviews, annual policies, recurring assessments. HostBreach adds passive external intelligence so leadership can ask whether the observable environment supports the assumptions in the plan.
PRIORITY
Sharper sequencing
External context can help distinguish the issue that is merely documented from the condition that deserves validation now.
COMMUNICATION
More concrete risk language
Leadership discussions become easier when risk is connected to observable conditions, business impact, and a specific decision.
ACCOUNTABILITY
Recheck after change
After remediation or a provider change, revisit the outside view rather than assuming the exposure changed because the ticket closed.
Who It Fits
Built for organizations that need judgment more than another dashboard
Threat-informed vCISO services are a fit when leadership needs a senior security perspective but does not need—or cannot justify—a full-time executive hire.
growing SMBsdefense contractorsfederal suppliersregulated organizations
NOT.A.MSSP
HostBreach is advisory, not an outsourced SOC
We do not need to operate the security stack we recommend. That keeps the engagement focused on decisions, accountability, and vendor-neutral guidance.
vCISO Fit Call
Book a 15-Minute CallNeed a security leader—not another tool?
Use a short call to discuss your current team, the decisions leadership is carrying, and whether fractional advisory is the right model.