2025-06-18
🛡️
Why Most SMBs Fail Their First Security Audit
The three gaps that show up in nearly every first-time audit — and the simple controls that close them before examiners walk in.
Info-Byte, Inc. delivers fractional vCISO and vCIO leadership — enterprise-grade security and IT strategy built for organizations that can't afford a breach but don't need a full-time exec.
Executive-level expertise — deployed without the overhead of a full-time hire.
Strategy, governance, risk management, vendor oversight, and board-level communication. Your security program, built end-to-end.
IT roadmapping, vendor rationalization, budget planning, and technology alignment. Strategic IT leadership at a fraction of the cost.
IAM Identity Center, GuardDuty, VPC segmentation, multi-account architecture, and zero-trust design for regulated environments.
Rapid7-powered vulnerability management and coordinated penetration testing with a documented remediation program that closes the gaps.
NCUA, FFIEC, PCI-DSS, HIPAA — audit prep, policy development, control testing, and examiner-ready documentation. No surprises.
Structured technical training for IT and security teams — networking, help desk escalation, security awareness, hands-on skill development.
Every engagement has a defined outcome. Here's what clients walk away with.
From blank slate to policy framework, risk register, vendor controls, and board-ready reporting — with clients audit-prepared inside the first engagement cycle.
Every client engagement comes with a remediation plan tied to real deadlines. Findings get closed — not deferred, not documented and ignored.
When something goes wrong, speed is everything. Clients with an active IR plan in place have contained and recovered from security events in under 24 hours.
A fast-growing payments company had a six-figure enterprise deal contingent on SOC 2 Type II. Info-Byte, Inc. stepped in as fractional vCISO, built the compliance program from zero, and delivered a clean audit — on time, without derailing the engineering roadmap.
// deal closed on scheduleA managed service provider serving 40+ SMB clients had no standardized security baseline. We designed a repeatable zero-trust framework, deployed it across their client stack, and trained the internal team to own it going forward — turning security into a billable differentiator.
// new revenue stream unlockedDetected lateral movement in a client's environment before payload execution. Contained the breach, rebuilt detection and response playbooks, hardened endpoints, and had the client fully operational within 48 hours. Follow-on IR retainer in place ever since.
// $0 ransom paid · 48hr recoveryA 30-person professional services firm was overpaying for overlapping tools and had no IT strategy. vCIO engagement rationalized the vendor stack, cut monthly IT spend by 30%, migrated to cloud infrastructure, and put a 3-year technology roadmap in place.
// 30% IT cost reduction20+ years in cybersecurity leadership across regulated financial institutions, credit unions, and SMBs. Founder of Info-Byte, Inc. since 2007. Hands-on from firewall to boardroom.
Info-Byte, Inc. was founded in 2007 on one conviction: small and mid-size businesses deserve real security leadership — not checkbox compliance, not overpriced retainers, not advice from someone who's never configured a firewall.
Shane Petrollese has spent over two decades inside regulated financial institutions — deploying AWS security architecture, leading NCUA and FFIEC audit cycles, running Rapid7 MDR programs, and training technical teams from help desk to C-suite. He's done the work, not just consulted on it.
Clients span financial services, healthcare, MSPs, and professional services — delivered via remote-first engagements with on-site availability when it matters.
Deep experience across regulated and commercial markets.
Live feed of vulnerabilities CISA has confirmed are being actively exploited in the wild. Updated automatically.
Practical guidance from 20+ years in the field. No vendor fluff.
The three gaps that show up in nearly every first-time audit — and the simple controls that close them before examiners walk in.
Over-privileged IAM roles are the #1 finding in cloud security reviews. Here's how permission creep starts — and how to cut it back without breaking things.
A $250K+ full-time CISO makes sense at scale. For most businesses under 200 employees, fractional is faster, cheaper, and often more effective. Here's the breakdown.
From first call to running security program. No long sales cycles. No fluff.
We walk your environment, biggest risks, and goals. Honest assessment — no pitch deck required.
Clear scope, timeline, and engagement model — fixed or retainer — matched to your actual needs.
Immediate work on your highest-priority gaps. No warm-up period. We know what good looks like.
Defined metrics. Documented progress. You own everything we build — no lock-in, no black box.
30 minutes. No pitch. Just an honest look at where you stand and what to fix first.
Security program, compliance prep, pen testing, team training, or a second opinion on where you stand — let's talk. No obligation.
Serving clients nationwide · Remote-first · On-site available
shane@info-byte.com · Highland, NY