EXECUTIVE IT PLAYBOOK

The SMB security quick-wins

The cybersecurity survival guide for Metro Detroit small and midsize businesses.

SECTION // 01IMMEDIATE RISK ASSESSMENT

The 3AM test

Cyber threats do not keep office hours. Most IT operational gaps are invisible until they become expensive outage claims. If your main server or tenant locked at 3:00 AM tonight, can you answer these four questions?

Who gets alerted?

Is there a human-reviewed 24/7 Security Operations Center actively watching your environment?

How fast is response?

Do you have a documented SLA for emergency response and incident containment?

Is backup verified?

When was the last time a full system restore test was performed and recorded?

Would operations stop?

Could your organization survive 48 hours of total operational downtime?

The operational reality

If you do not have clear, verifiable answers to these four questions, your coverage is an unverified promise.

SECTION // 02VULNERABILITY CHECKLIST

The false sense of security checklist

Review your current IT posture against these baseline administrative standards. Check the controls you can produce evidence for today.

Enforced MFA on every user account, including email, VPN, and admin portals.

Zero credential reuse permitted between corporate and personal devices.

Backups are isolation-tested for full recovery monthly, with dated log records.

Your IT provider maintains a written SLA for critical ticket response times.

You maintain an updated evidence package for your cyber insurance renewal.

Executives and administrative roles carry additional conditional access protections.

Endpoint detection and response (EDR) is actively monitored by US-based SOC engineers.

6 to 7 CHECKED

Low Exposure

4 to 5 CHECKED

Moderate Exposure

0 to 3 CHECKED

High Audit Failure Risk

SECTION // 03ACTION ITEMS

Immediate fixes you can inspect today

Real security is built on documented execution. Here are four baseline controls to audit immediately with your IT team.

Enable MFA across all accounts

Ensure Security Defaults or Conditional Access is actively enforced in Microsoft 365 and cloud tenants, especially for remote access.

Offboard former staff

Orphaned accounts are a primary entry point for credential attacks. Audit and deprovision inactive directory accounts immediately.

Strengthen password policies

Implement long passphrases and vaulted password managers rather than frequent complex rotations that encourage written shortcuts.

Verify backup restore logs

Do not rely on green status emails alone. Execute a test file and database restore to verify actual time-to-recovery.

SECTION // 04COMPLIANCE & INSURANCE

Cyber insurance readiness

Carriers now treat insurance applications as technical audits. Attestations are no longer enough; underwriters ask for exported configuration logs and policy evidence before renewing coverage.

Common coverage denial factors

Missing MFA on remote desktop or VPN
Undated incident response documentation
Unpatched critical server vulnerabilities
Non-isolated backups accessible from local admin accounts

UNDERWRITING EVIDENCE

Required baseline controls

24/7 EDR & SOC Monitoring

Annual Security Awareness Training Records

Immutable Offsite Backups with Restore Logs

Documented Patch Management & Incident Response Plan

SECTION // 05STRATEGIC OVERSIGHT

Executive visibility dashboard

Key performance indicators business leaders should receive in monthly posture reporting.

Failed Login Attempts

Backup Success Rates

Device Health Status

Ticket SLA Response Time

Phishing Simulation Activity

Uptime & Downtime Trends

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