Compliance
Evaluate adherence to regulations, audit readiness, governance documentation, and risk management policies.
72
%
struggle with access control sprawl
59
%
report limited monitoring of client data access
55% of CPA firms experienced a cyber attack in 2025
Clients trust you with personal and financial records. One breach can trigger malpractice claims and lost business. Mature controls keep books balanced and reputations strong.
TRUST
CPA Firms Run on Customer Trust
It takes just one overlooked control to unravel years of credibility. Are you sure every policy, patch, and person is ready when it counts?
Top Cybersecurity & Governance Risks for CPA Firms
Stay ahead of ransomware, wire‑fraud scams, and vendor breaches with accounting‑ready defenses.
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Top Risks
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Pain Points
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Solutions
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|---|---|---|
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Ransomware and Data Extortion
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Encrypted tax files, missed filing deadlines, public leaks. |
Immutable backups, 24 × 7 MDR, recovery playbooks. |
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Business Email Compromise and Wire Fraud
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Diverted refund transfers and payroll theft. |
Mail‑flow analytics, MFA rollout, phishing simulation. |
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Third‑Party Software Breaches
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Compromised practice‑management or billing platforms leak PII |
Third‑party risk monitoring, contract reviews, access audits. |
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Insider Threat and Misdelivery
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Accidental or malicious release of client data. |
Data‑loss prevention, least‑privilege enforcement, user training. |
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Regulatory Non‑Compliance (FTC Safeguards, IRS Pub 4557)
|
Fines, lost clients, insurance denial. |
Formal risk assessment, policy refresh, audit‑ready evidence. |
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Working With ForgepathForgepath delivered outstanding service on our network and app security tests.
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Working With ForgepathForgepath separates themselves from the rest as they’re a true security partner.
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Find the Right Security Operation Bundle for Your CPA Firm
Transfer cyber risk with our best-in-class security operation bundles purpose-build for CPAs.
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Bundle Features
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Protect
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Defend
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Fortify
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|---|---|---|---|
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FTC Safeguards Rule Readiness
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One-time gap assessment against FTC Safeguards requirements and a written remediation roadmap covering policies, controls, and technical priorities.
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Includes Protect tier plus ongoing FTC Safeguards support including evidence collection, control tracking, and annual review of compliance status.
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Includes Protect and Defend tiers plus periodic independent-style validation of FTC Safeguards controls through targeted technical checks, documentation review, and management-ready compliance summaries.
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Compliance Management as a Service
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Development of core security governance including policies, standards, and a basic risk ownership model beyond FTC-only requirements.
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Includes Protect tier plus operation of a living compliance program including risk register management, control mapping, and quarterly compliance status reporting.
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Includes Protect and Defend tiers plus multi-framework compliance support with coordinated control tracking across standards and audit-prep documentation.
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Security Awareness Training + Phish Testing
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Annual security awareness training and baseline phishing simulations.
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Includes Protect tier plus ongoing training program with role-based content and recurring phishing exercises.
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Includes Protect and Defend tiers plus advanced social-engineering scenarios and behavior-driven risk metrics.
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Incident Response Readiness
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Creation of an incident response plan aligned to regulatory and business requirements.
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Includes Protect tier plus plan refinement through tabletop exercises and escalation workflow design.
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Includes Protect and Defend tiers incident readiness validation including coordination with legal, forensics, and recovery planning.
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Vulnerability Management
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Routine vulnerability scanning with prioritized remediation guidance.
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Advanced vulnerability analysis with verified exploitable results tied to business impact.
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Third-Party Risk Management
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Vendor risk assessments and baseline due-diligence workflows.
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Includes Defend tier plus ongoing third-party risk monitoring and contract-level security guidance.
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Identity & Access Review
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Review of authentication, access controls, and privileged account exposure.
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Advanced access governance and reduction of high-risk privilege paths.
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AI Governance & Security
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Inventory of AI and automation use cases, baseline risk screening, and creation of AI usage and governance policies aligned to FTC Safeguards Rule.
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Advanced AI security review covering client data exposure, misuse scenarios, and control gaps.
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Ongoing AI risk oversight including policy enforcement, vendor governance, and monitoring of data flows.
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Penetration Testing
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Annual network or application penetration testing to identify real-world attack paths.
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Digital Forensics & Incident Response Retainer
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Priority access to forensic and response support when incidents occur.
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Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery
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Review of recovery plans to ensure operational resilience after incidents.
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SCORE
Security, Compliance, Operations, Risk Evaluation
Built on expert interviews and continuous industry research, SCORE quickly identifies security gaps and resilience issues—delivering a graded report to guide smarter cybersecurity decisions.
Operations
Review security operations including response readiness, staff awareness, asset control, and SOC monitoring.
Risk
Quantify probable loss for risks identified in business continuity, vendor dependencies, internal vulnerabilities.
Security
Identify gaps in AI security, application architecture, data privacy, and access management.
Evaluation
Measure overall security maturity, benchmark posture against industry standards, and prioritize remediation efforts based on business impact.
Take The Next Step
Protect Client Trust Year‑Round
Book a strategy call to close Safeguards gaps, stop wire‑fraud schemes, and keep every filing on track.
