Why CFOs and CISOs Should Care About B2B Cyber Audits

Today’s digital landscape is breaking down traditional silos — especially those around core business risks.

Cybersecurity, which was at one point viewed primarily as an IT concern, has leapfrogged to the top of the priority list for chief financial officers (CFOs) and chief information security officers (CISOs).

After all, cyber threats are everywhere, and they don’t just target big corporations: they go after partners, suppliers and third-party vendors too. As businesses increasingly rely on third-party vendors, partners, and suppliers to operate efficiently, the need for robust business-to-business (B2B) cyber audits has never been more critical.

For example, online food delivery marketplace Grubhub said last week (Feb. 3) that it recently identified an incident involving a third-party contractor; while Cleo on Monday (Feb. 10) launched a tool for freight brokers, carriers and third-party logistics providers (3PLs) designed to help reduce supply chain risk.

Whether driven by regulatory mandates, contractual obligations, or internal risk management, B2B cyber audits help organizations assess their security posture, identify vulnerabilities, and build trust with partners and clients. For C-suite leaders, these audits are not just about compliance but about safeguarding their enterprise’s long-term stability, resilience and trust.

Read more: Managing Third-Party Risks Emerges as Key B2B Issue

Mitigating Risk Across the Expanding Cyber Threat Landscape

The need for enhanced security assessments is underscored by the growing scale and sophistication of cyberattacks. Ransomware attacks have surged, supply chain vulnerabilities are more pronounced than ever and compliance requirements continue to evolve. In response, organizations are becoming interested in conducting more rigorous cybersecurity audits, ensuring that their operations — and those of their partners — are resilient against emerging threats.

As evidenced by 2024’s biggest breaches, including the snowball impact of the Snowflake cloud hack, B2B organizations and their internal leadership are more and more recognizing that a single vulnerability in a third-party vendor can have cascading consequences across their entire network.

For CFOs and CISOs, the realities of the threat landscape are reshaping the calculus around security. While traditional network perimeter defenses remain important, attackers are increasingly targeting cloud environments, software supply chains and even operational technology systems.

Supply chain security is increasingly now a boardroom discussion, and contractual obligations are another major driver of cybersecurity audits. Enterprises, including PYMNTS and PYMNTS clients, are increasingly demanding that their vendors and business partners adhere to stringent security standards, ensuring that shared data and interconnected systems are not vulnerable to breaches.

For CFOs, this is more than a technology concern — it’s a financial and regulatory issue. A breach can result in legal penalties, compliance failures and loss of market trust. For CISOs, ensuring third-party cybersecurity is critical in mitigating risks associated with supply chain vulnerabilities.

And as cyber threats evolve, so too do cybersecurity audit methodologies. Traditional annual or biannual audits are giving way to more continuous, real-time security assessments. Advances in automation, artificial intelligence and threat intelligence are enabling companies to identify and address security gaps more efficiently than ever before.

Read more: Digital Evolution of Finance Function Sees CFOs Embracing Cyber Duty

Building Trust and Competitive Advantage

Security is no longer just an IT issue; it’s becoming a business enabler. While cybersecurity audits are often viewed as a defensive necessity, they can also offer organizations a way to build trust with partners and gain a competitive edge. Companies that can demonstrate rigorous security assessments are likely to not only reassure clients but also position themselves favorably in competitive bidding processes.

Technology can help CFOs and CISOs both undertake cyber audits and ensure that their organization’s processes and methodologies are meeting partner best practices. The latest edition of PYMNTS Intelligence’s Certainty Project, a collaboration with Coupa, finds that automated procurement fraud detection systems double the likelihood of reducing fraud compared to staff training.

Yet despite the availability of advanced solutions, a significant portion of middle-market firms continue to rely on manual fraud prevention strategies while facing rising fraud risks in the procure-to-pay cycle, with the PYMNTS Intelligence report finding that just 28% of firms have adopted automated fraud detection systems.

Still, among middle-market firms operating under high uncertainty, 22% identify third-party fraud as their top threat.

Fortunately, the marketplace is responding. News broke last week (Feb. 7) that Mastercard and global cybersecurity and PCI compliance company VikingCloud are developing cybersecurity solutions designed for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

“Fraudsters are always going to fraud,” Radar CEO and Co-founder Nick Patrick told PYMNTS. “But with the right tools, businesses can stay one step ahead.”

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