The Startup Security Essentials
You don't need a CISO, a SOC, and a million-dollar security budget to be secure. You need the right foundations.
Identity and Access Management — Enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) across all systems, from day one, no exceptions. Implement single sign-on (SSO) as your application count grows. Follow least-privilege access — every person and service account should have the minimum access needed to do their job.
Cloud Security Basics — If you're building on AWS, Azure, or GCP (and most startups are), start with the provider's security best practices. Enable logging, encrypt data at rest and in transit, restrict public access to storage and databases, and use infrastructure-as-code to prevent configuration drift.
Application Security — Embed security into your development process. Use dependency scanning to catch vulnerable libraries, implement code review processes, and run basic security testing (SAST/DAST) in your CI/CD pipeline. Address the OWASP Top 10 as a baseline.
Endpoint Protection — Ensure all employee devices have endpoint detection and response (EDR) capabilities, are encrypted, and are kept updated. Mobile device management (MDM) becomes important as the team grows.
Backup and Recovery — Implement automated, tested backups for all critical data and systems. Ensure backups are isolated from production (so ransomware can't encrypt them too). Test recovery procedures regularly.
Security Policies — Even small teams need basic policies: acceptable use, access management, incident response, and data handling. These don't need to be bureaucratic documents — they need to be clear, practical, and followed.