A cybersecurity assessment is the starting point for understanding and improving an organisation's security posture. Whether you're an IT security consultant, MSP, vCISO, or internal security team, structured assessments reveal gaps and guide improvement priorities. Traditional cybersecurity assessments rely on spreadsheets and manual analysis. Talkpoint transforms this process by creating structured, scoreable assessments that capture security status across governance, access controls, data protection, incident response, compliance, and third-party risk. Category scores instantly highlight weak areas, while AI insights help you prioritise remediation conversations. For clients, a professional cybersecurity assessment demonstrates that their security partner takes a systematic approach—building trust and setting the stage for ongoing engagement.
Template questions (preview)
A sample of the questions included in Cybersecurity Assessment. Use this template as a starting point, then customise it to your workflow.
Security Governance
Leadership commitment, policies, and organisational approach to cybersecurity. Governance sets the foundation for effective security. High scores indicate mature security management; low scores suggest ad-hoc approaches that increase risk.
- •Do you have a formal information security policy?
- •Is there executive-level accountability for cybersecurity?
- •How would you rate your overall security programme maturity?
- •Do you have a dedicated security team or resource?
Access Controls
How the organisation manages user access, authentication, and authorisation. Access control is fundamental to preventing unauthorised access. High scores indicate strong identity management; low scores reveal potential entry points for attackers.
- •Is multi-factor authentication enforced for all users?
- •How are user access rights managed?
- •Are admin/privileged accounts properly controlled?
- •Do you perform regular access reviews?
Data Protection
How sensitive data is classified, protected, and managed throughout its lifecycle. Data protection failures lead to breaches and compliance violations. High scores indicate mature data handling; low scores suggest data exposure risks.
- •Is sensitive data classified and labelled?
- •Is data encrypted at rest and in transit?
- •Do you have data backup and recovery procedures?
- •How is data retention and disposal managed?
Incident Response
Preparedness to detect, respond to, and recover from security incidents. Incident response capability determines breach impact. High scores indicate readiness; low scores suggest incidents will cause greater damage.
- •Do you have a documented incident response plan?
- •Has the plan been tested in the past 12 months?
- •Do you have security monitoring and alerting in place?
- •What's your biggest concern about incident response readiness?
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How it works
From scan to conversation in three simple steps
Deploy the assessment
Use our cybersecurity assessment template or customise for specific frameworks (SOC 2, ISO 27001, etc.).
Collect responses
Send to IT leaders or security stakeholders. They complete the assessment covering all security domains.
Analyse and advise
Review category scores and AI insights. Use findings to guide remediation planning and service proposals.
What you get
Everything you need to start better sales conversations
Domain-based scoring
Visual scores for governance, access controls, data protection, incident response, compliance, and third-party risk.
Gap identification
Instantly see which security domains need the most attention based on assessment responses.
Compliance mapping
Identify which regulatory frameworks apply and current compliance status.
Remediation priorities
AI insights highlight the most critical security gaps to address first.
Professional reports
Export branded cybersecurity assessment reports for clients and stakeholders.
Baseline tracking
Repeat assessments to measure security improvement over time.
When to use this
Common scenarios where this approach adds value
New client onboarding
Assess client security posture before proposing managed security services.
Compliance readiness
Evaluate readiness for SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, or other compliance frameworks.
Annual security reviews
Conduct periodic assessments to track security maturity and identify new gaps.
Incident response planning
Assess preparedness to detect, respond to, and recover from security incidents.
Example talking points
AI-generated conversation starters based on scan responses
- 1Access controls scored 'Basic/ad-hoc'—MFA isn't enforced for all users. This should be the first remediation priority.
- 2You have a security policy but incident response rated low. Let's develop and test a formal response plan.
- 3SOC 2 applies to your business but you haven't had a security audit. We should start compliance preparation now.
- 4Third-party risk management is minimal. Given your vendor dependencies, implementing vendor security assessments is critical.