Case Study: Building a Cybersecurity Program for a Global Telecom Operator

Project Overview:

We partnered with a global telecommunications operator to build a comprehensive cybersecurity program from the ground up. This initiative involved establishing robust security governance, incident response protocols, and a scalable framework to protect the organization’s vast network infrastructure and customer data.

Challenges:

·         The company operated across multiple regions, requiring a flexible yet uniform cybersecurity framework that addressed both local regulations and global cybersecurity standards.

·         A wide array of technologies, from fiber to SASE to voice services, meant that the security program needed to cover a vast attack surface.

·         Ensuring alignment between technical cybersecurity controls and business objectives, while also addressing compliance with GDPR, PCI-DSS, and other industry standards.

·         Overcoming organizational silos to build a cohesive cybersecurity culture across engineering, IT, and operations teams. ·         The firm had a decentralized structure, with multiple business units operating independently across several regions, making it difficult to standardize risk management practices.

·         Legacy IT systems and disparate network technologies introduced various risks, including cybersecurity, regulatory compliance, and operational resilience issues.

·         Leadership teams in different regions had varying levels of risk tolerance, complicating efforts to implement a uniform risk management methodology.

Solutions Implemented:

·         Conducted a thorough gap analysis to assess existing security practices and benchmarked them against industry standards such as NIST and CIS.

·         Developed a cybersecurity governance framework that included policy creation, role definitions, and decision-making hierarchies, ensuring accountability at every level.

·         Introduced a training and awareness program aimed at promoting security best practices among staff and technical teams, ensuring that everyone played a role in safeguarding the company’s assets.

·         Conducted workshops with key stakeholders to map out critical risks in the organization’s network infrastructure, supply chain, and IT systems.

·         Deployed a GRC platform (ServiceNow) to automate risk assessment and reporting processes, enabling real-time tracking of risk trends and mitigation efforts.

·         Developed risk dashboards to provide executive leadership with a clear view of risk exposure, mitigation progress, and areas requiring further attention.

Results:

·         Within the first year, the telecom operator saw a 40% reduction in security incidents due to the establishment of clear incident response protocols and ongoing threat monitoring.

·         The cybersecurity program became fully integrated into the company’s broader operational strategy, ensuring that security risks were considered in every business decision.

·         Compliance with multiple industry regulations, including GDPR and PCI-DSS, was achieved, enabling the company to avoid significant fines and penalties.

·         Successfully implemented a uniform risk management framework across all regions, reducing overall risk exposure by 25% in the first year of implementation.

·         Improved decision-making at the executive level, as the ERM framework provided actionable insights into high-risk areas, allowing for timely interventions (KRI/KPI)

·         Integrated risk management into the company’s operational and strategic planning processes, ensuring that risk considerations were part of every major decision.

·         Enhanced the firm’s resilience to network disruptions, cyber threats, and operational failures, ensuring smoother operations across its global telecommunications network