Security ratings services have become a popular way for companies to assess their own cybersecurity posture, as well as that of their partners. And, while they are useful for establishing a data baseline of competence, they are often relied on as something more than that. For example, they’re used in boardrooms as “eye candy” to portray the state of company cyber-risk, with supply chain partners to manage third-party risk and, even more frightening, by insurance companies to create risk profiles for cyber-insurance policies.
Unfortunately, when companies use these ratings in this way it’s like saying “the weather will be beautiful today” just by looking at the outdoor temperature – an incomplete assessment that’s often dreadfully wrong.