Like most large-scale organizations, colleges and universities often rely on a network of third-party vendors for day-to-day business operations. These vendors may handle various tasks, ranging from hospitality and food services to facility management and IT infrastructure.
Regardless of the services they provide, third-party vendors can introduce serious security risks if a college or university does not utilize a robust vendor risk management program. These security risks can include devasting data breaches, cyber attacks, disruptions to business operations, and more.
Vendor risk management (VRM) can be made easier by technology solutions that automate steps and streamline time-consuming processes. This blog explores technology solutions to enhance vendor risk management programs and how they can specifically help colleges and universities looking to improve their VRM processes.
Why do universities need vendor risk management?
Higher education institutions are a consistent target for cybercriminals because of the large amount of sensitive data they collect and use. Additionally, colleges and universities utilize an extensive network of service providers for various business operations, some of which may not use appropriate information security or cybersecurity practices—making them additional targets.
Vendor risk management is the process of managing and monitoring security risks resulting from third-party vendors, IT suppliers, and cloud solutions. Higher ed institutions need vendor risk management practices for a variety of reasons, including:
- Protecting sensitive data: Universities manage sensitive information, such as student/staff records, research data, and finances. Vendors access this data through cloud storage, IT systems, etc. VRM ensures vendors maintain data security to prevent breaches and unauthorized access.
- Maintaining compliance: Universities must comply with regulations like FERPA, HIPAA, and GDPR. A VRM program helps ensure vendor compliance, reducing the risk of penalties and reputational damage.
- Operational continuity: External vendors are crucial for university functions such as IT infrastructure, food services, and facility management. VRM helps identify potential risks that could disrupt operations and ensure reliable services.
- Cost management: An effective VRM program helps universities evaluate vendor contracts, manage costs efficiently, identify potential risks early, and prevent unforeseen expenses.
- Strategic decision-making: Strong vendor partnerships improve collaboration and service quality. VRM provides reliability and performance insights, helping universities select the right partners and maintain standards.
- Reputation management: Universities require high ethical and academic standards. Vendor misconduct can harm their reputation. VRM programs monitor vendor practices to ensure alignment with the university's values.
- Evolving threat landscape: As cyber threats evolve, universities need a proactive approach to assess and respond to risks. VRM helps identify evolving risks and ensure timely responses.
Vendor risk management can be an overwhelming process, especially if an organization is starting from scratch or unsure of how best to optimize the different elements of an effective VRM program.
Technology solutions for vendor risk management are designed to streamline the individual components of a VRM program while creating an easy way to respond to and manage vendor risks comprehensively.
What are vendor-related security risks for colleges & universities?
Vendor-related security risks are any form of risk that is involved when working with vendors, suppliers, or service providers that could result in security breaches, disruption of business operations, monetary loss, or exposure of sensitive information and personally identifiable information (PII). When schools decide to onboard or partner with a third party, it creates many new attack vectors and vulnerabilities for threat actors to exploit.
Common security risks that can affect vendors include:
- Software misconfigurations
- Cloud leaks
- Ransomware attacks or phishing attempts
- Password hacking
- Bad strategic decision-making
- Regulatory compliance failure
- Supply chain disruption
It's important for schools to implement vendor management solutions to minimize third and fourth-party risk. However, managing vendor security risks can be time-consuming, costly, and complicated if done manually or without the right security framework in place.
Without a proper VRM solution, higher ed schools put themselves at risk of potential data breaches or cyber attacks, which may also violate various regulatory compliance standards, such as NIST SP 800-171, Gramm-Leach-Biley Act (GLBA), Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS), and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), among many others.
Reducing vendor-related security risks in colleges & universities
To reduce vendor-related security risks, schools, remote learning institutions and collegiate athletics must implement a system of safeguards and security controls as part of their VRM solution. Examining security practices, cyber threat prevention, authentication processes, and defining access privileges are all important steps to take in addition to managing the vendors themselves.
1. Conducting Vendor Risk Assessments
Vendor risk assessments allow colleges and universities to properly assess the cybersecurity risks and overall security posture of their vendors. Risk assessments are essential when deciding whether or not to work with certain vendors by verifying if they have implemented proper information security and data protection processes. If potential vendors don't meet security requirements during the procurement stage, it's up to the university to determine if the vendor's risk profile is worth taking on.
One of the main vendor risk assessment tools developed for higher education schools is the HECVAT (Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Tool). HECVAT was designed by a group of CISOs in the education sector to help IT security teams better assess third-party vendor risks and if they have adequate data security, incident response plans, and security policies in place before the onboarding process.
HECVAT is composed of a series of security questionnaires that shorten the assessment period and lower the burden on security teams by allowing self-completion. Once completed, schools can prioritize remediation for vendors using vendor tiering. Vendor tiering categorizes vendors by risk impact levels (low, medium, high, critical) and helps streamline the development of a VRM strategy.
In addition to HECVAT, colleges and universities may also use other risk assessments or questionnaires to determine third-party security and regulatory compliance, like:
- SOC 2 Audits
- NIST SP 800-171
- Standardized Information Gathering (SIG)
- ISO Compliance Audits
Learn about third-party risk assessment best practices >
2. Establishing a Cybersecurity Framework
Cybersecurity frameworks provide a structured approach to managing and reducing cybersecurity risks, especially those associated with external vendors who may have access to sensitive data and institutional systems. Frameworks include data encryption policies, secure access controls, regular vulnerability assessments, and incident response strategies. Additionally, these frameworks often incorporate the latest recommended practices and are adaptable to evolving cyber threats, ensuring that third-party vendors are equipped to defend their attack surface against sophisticated cyber attacks.
For higher education institutions, where protecting student information, research data, and intellectual property is of utmost importance, a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy that extends to vendor relationships is vitalsuch as the cybersecurity program, Vendor Risk Management. A robust cybersecurity framework safeguards against data breaches and cyber threats, reinforcing the institution's reputation as a secure and trustworthy environment for education and research. Cybersecurity frameworks include:
- NIST Cybersecurity Framework: Use the NIST framework to assess and improve the vendor's cybersecurity practices.
- ISO 27001: Evaluate the vendor's alignment with the ISO 27001 standard for information security management.
- SIG Lite: Understand your vendor’s internal information security controls by mapping them to the SIG Lite framework.
3. Managing Vendor Relationships
Universities can work with dozens of vendors simultaneously, making the vendor relationship management process one of the most important steps to reducing vendor risk. Whether the vendor is a small, independent contractor or a large supplier account, overseeing each individual vendor and managing the relationship is part of the due diligence process and helps improve the vendor's risk management efforts.
Communication with vendors is the most important element for ensuring they consistently meet security standards. Additionally, ongoing assessments evaluate crucial factors like:
- How the vendor fits into the future goals of the school
- Cost evaluations
- Contractual agreements
- Annual risk assessments
- KPI readjustments
- Continual cybersecurity education and training for staff
As part of their overall VRM plans, schools should also document key vendor information and outline agreements to be put in the contract. By doing so, both parties can ultimately set clear objectives for the future and nurture a stronger relationship by identifying key indicators of strong vendor performance. This process can be assisted with checklists, compliance teams, legal teams, and external auditors to ensure the VRM plan is followed through on both ends.
4. Improving Vendor Maturity
As VRM programs begin to scale and grow, the cyber maturity of vendors must also grow with it. Using a vendor risk management maturity model (VRMMM), schools can begin measuring their own vendor cyber resiliency growth over time. A VRMMM is part of an ongoing process of improving overall vendor maturity and security hygiene as both sides begin to grow. A maturity model should include specific steps and milestones for the school to attain and measure its third-party security controls.
Typically, a vendor maturity model is categorized into six different levels:
- Startup-level, no VRM processes in place
- Initial security processes are in place and VRM processes are used on an ad hoc basis
- Clear roadmap for VRM implementation and increased ad hoc activity
- Fully defined and established VRM solutions
- Complete implementation and operational VRM, framework, and compliance measures
- Continuous improvement of industry-leading VRM performance
Schools must consistently improve their own third-party vendor maturity levels as a crucial step to limiting vendor-related security risks. The VRMMM should provide a complete overview of the school's approach to their VRM solutions and allow the school to set goals for themselves to make repeated improvements yearly.
Best practices for third-party risk management in university healthcare and counseling
Managing third-party risk is crucial for safeguarding sensitive data and ensuring the integrity of services provided by university healthcare and counseling centers. Best practices in third-party risk management provide a strategic framework for mitigating potential threats posed by external vendors and partners.
By implementing these measures, universities can proactively address vulnerabilities, maintain regulatory compliance, and protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of health and personal health information (PHI).
Below are best practices that security teams should include in their comprehensive TPRM process for university healthcare and counseling centers, designed to enhance data security and support the well-being and safety of a student population.
Vendor risk assessment and due diligence
Vendor risk assessment and due diligence are crucial for managing third-party risk in university healthcare and counseling centers, especially in safeguarding sensitive data. By thoroughly evaluating potential third-party providers, these institutions can identify and mitigate potential security vulnerabilities before onboarding and throughout their lifecycle.
This process involves assessing the vendor’s cybersecurity practices, information security, data protection measures, and compliance with relevant regulations such as HIPAA. Through detailed questionnaires, audits, and background checks, universities can ensure that third-party vendors maintain robust security postures and adhere to strict data protection standards.
A proactive approach helps select trustworthy partners and minimizes the risk of data breaches from high-risk vendors and unauthorized access to sensitive information, thereby preserving the integrity and confidentiality of students’ and patients’ health and personal data.
Vendor mapping
Universities and remote learning institutions need to identify which third-party service providers are present in their vendor ecosystem before they can assess potential risks associated with these vendors. A comprehensive vendor map should include an inventory of all third-party vendors and notable fourth-party providers in the organization’s digital supply chain. With a complete map of all vendors, you can institute a TPRM program that accounts for the most critical service providers.
To start mapping your vendor ecosystem, your organization must share vendor information across departments, identifying all cloud-based services, third-party applications, and other vendors used in your remote learning environment. Common vendors used in remote learning include:
- Learning management systems: Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle
- Video conferencing platforms: Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Webex
- Educational content providers: Pearson, McGraw Hill
- Communication platforms: Microsoft Teams, Slack, Discord Padlet, Prezi, Slido
- Online textbook providers: Chegg, VitalSource, CourseSmart
- Virtual classroom tools: Nearpod, Pear Deck, Jamboard Canva, Whiteboard
- Web-based learning platforms: Kahoot!, Quizlet, Edpuzzle
- Document tools: Google Suite, Microsoft OneNote, Dropbox, Evernote
- Office hours schedulers: Google Calendar, Calendly, Doodle
Once your organization identifies all the third-party vendors present in its remote learning environment, you can add each vendor to your UpGuard vendor inventory to start monitoring and tracking the security posture of all your service providers. Using UpGuard Vendor Risk, your organization can apply vendor labels to tag and categorize vendors. Easily monitor all vendors in a centralized location, compare potential vendors by category, and apply actions to all vendors using a particular label.
Contractual security requirements
Contractual security requirements are crucial for managing third-party risk in university healthcare and counseling centers. By including specific cybersecurity and data protection clauses in contracts, universities can ensure that third-party providers adhere to strict security standards.
These contracts clearly outline each party's responsibilities, including data handling procedures, compliance with regulations like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and incident response protocols. Additionally, they often require regular security audits and assessments to confirm ongoing compliance.
By establishing these expectations upfront, universities can create a legal framework that holds third-party vendors accountable for protecting sensitive information, thereby significantly reducing the risk of data breaches and unauthorized access across their health systems.
Continuous monitoring and auditing
Continuous monitoring and auditing are necessary for managing third-party risk in university healthcare and counseling centers. By implementing ongoing surveillance of third-party activities across the supply chain, universities can promptly detect and respond to suspicious behaviors or potential security breaches.
Automated tools and regular audits provide real-time insights into the security practices and data privacy of third-party providers. This proactive approach ensures that any deviations from established security protocols are quickly identified and addressed, minimizing the risk of data breaches.
Continuous monitoring also facilitates compliance with regulatory requirements and helps maintain a robust security posture. Regularly assessing third-party performance and security measures ensures that sensitive health and personal data remain protected, preserving the trust and safety of students and patients alike.
Incident response and contingency planning
Incident response and contingency planning are essential for managing third-party risk in university healthcare and counseling centers. Creating a comprehensive incident response plan involving third-party interactions ensures that all parties are ready to respond quickly and effectively during a security incident or data breach.
This plan details specific procedures and responsibilities, enabling a coordinated and timely response to minimize damage and speed up recovery. Regular drills and simulations help reinforce these protocols, ensuring university staff across service levels and third-party vendors are well-prepared for their roles during a crisis.
By maintaining a robust contingency plan, universities can promptly address vulnerabilities, reduce the impact of breaches, and maintain continuity of care and services. This proactive preparation not only protects sensitive health and personal data but also enhances overall resilience against cyber threats, creating a secure environment for students and patients.
Risk tiering
Educational institutions may struggle to mitigate the risks of all third-party vendors immediately. Tiering helps organizations with resource or staffing restrictions prioritize mitigation and remediation efforts across high-risk vendors.
Vendor risk profiling allows higher education institutions to tailor their risk mitigation strategies for high-risk vendors. Advanced vendor risk profiling extends beyond basic evaluations to consider various risk factors, including cybersecurity threats, regulatory compliance, financial health, and vendor operational stability. Strategies can include:
- Sector-specific analysis: Evaluate vendors based on the specific risks associated with their industry sector. For example, evaluate cybersecurity risks posed by any cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform a university might use.
- Geographical risk assessment: Consider geopolitical risks, data sovereignty issues, and regional cybersecurity regulations affecting specific vendors. Universities in specific regions may have additional regulatory requirements based on local judicial systems.
By categorizing vendors based on their level of threat criticality, educational organizations can focus their risk management efforts on the vendors that pose the most significant cybersecurity risk to the organization.
University technology solutions for vendor risk management
Colleges and universities looking to enhance their VRM programs should explore technology solutions designed to streamline workflows and automate different elements of vendor risk management, from contract management to vendor assessments. It is essential to prioritize specific components of vendor risk management based on your institution's goals and outcomes.
Below are some common technology solutions recommended for higher education institutions looking to streamline their vendor risk management programs.
Third-party risk management platforms
Third-party risk management platforms can automate and centralize higher education vendor assessment processes. These platforms provide a dashboard for data collection and risk scoring, eliminating manual processes. Comprehensive dashboards and visualizations prioritize high-risk vendors, and automated follow-ups minimize disruptions.
These platforms continuously monitor vendors’ cybersecurity posture, financial stability, and compliance, proactively responding to potential threats. Advanced reporting features simplify compliance and provide accurate audit trails. Third-party risk management platforms safeguard sensitive data, improve efficiency, and cultivate strategic vendor partnerships, making them a valuable technology solution for any vendor management program.
How UpGuard helps
UpGuard Vendor Risk is a third-party risk management platform that delivers instant vendor insights, 360-degree assessments, and time-saving workflows all in a centralized dashboard.
UpGuard Vendor Risk includes all the necessary components for a robust VRM program, including security ratings, automated vendor discovery, vendor risk assessments, and end-to-end workflows. It allows you to utilize absolute visibility of your entire vendor library, assess vendors faster with automation tools, and scale your VRM program over time.
Explore all of UpGuard Vendor Risk features here >
Cybersecurity rating services
Cybersecurity rating services help higher education institutions manage their vendor risk, from the procurement process through vendor offboarding. These services scan and analyze vendor networks to identify potential risks and vulnerabilities across various domains. Universities can use the ratings to evaluate the security posture and level of risk of current and potential partners, prioritize resources for high-risk vendors, and track progress over time. Automated alerts notify universities of significant changes in ratings or cybersecurity risks, enabling them to take quick action to reduce exposure and enhance data protection.
The ratings provide comprehensive and real-time security insights based on external factors like public data breaches, system misconfigurations, and exposed databases. They complement internal assessments, enhance vendor due diligence processes, and assist universities in enforcing compliance with security standards and regulatory requirements. Ultimately, these ratings facilitate more transparent, strategic, and risk-conscious vendor relationships, improving the overall security of higher education networks.
How UpGuard helps
Instantly understand your vendors’ security posture with UpGuard’s data-driven, objective, and dynamic security ratings.
Our security ratings are generated through the analysis of trusted commercial, open-source, and proprietary threat intelligence feeds and non-intrusive data collection methods. Instantly understand your vendor’s overall security posture and take advantage of custom notifications that provide you with instant alerts when a vendor’s rating drops.
Check out more information about UpGuard’s security ratings here >
Compliance management services
Compliance management software automates the tracking and enforcement of regulatory requirements, making it ideal for higher education vendor risk management programs. These services allow for centralized, real-time monitoring of all vendors, with customizable templates and workflows that simplify compliance checks. Automated alerts notify procurement and risk management teams of potential violations, allowing them to take immediate remedial actions. The software seamlessly integrates with vendor risk assessment and monitoring tools, with advanced reporting capabilities that simplify audit preparation.
By providing a clear overview of vendor compliance, the software enables better decision-making regarding vendor selection, contract renewals, and partnership strategies. Ultimately, it helps universities maintain regulatory compliance and avoid legal and reputational risks.
How UpGuard helps
Accelerate your compliance management process by using UpGuard’s powerful and flexible security questionnaire tools.
UpGuard’s meticulously designed questionnaire library means you no longer have to create questionnaires from scratch. Utilize questionnaires based on industry-standard regulations (ISO 27001, NIST CSF, SIG Lite) or build your own with our questionnaire builder. Automated security questionnaires allow you to get deeper insights into your vendors’ regulatory compliance, and scale your security team by 10x.
Explore more about UpGuard’s security questionnaire features here >
Vendor due diligence and assessment services
Vendor due diligence and assessment services enhance higher education VRM programs by providing a systematic evaluation process for selecting and monitoring vendors. These services include in-depth questionnaires, background checks, and risk scoring based on cybersecurity, financial stability, and regulatory compliance. By automating data collection and analysis, they streamline the due diligence process, enabling faster, data-driven decisions.
Vendor due diligence and assessment services also continuously monitor vendor networks for any new vulnerabilities or compliance breaches, provide real-time alerts and remediation recommendations, and maintain comprehensive documentation of assessments and corrective actions. With such services, universities can minimize third-party risks, build strategic partnerships, and protect their academic reputation while adhering to stringent policies and regulatory standards.
How UpGuard helps
UpGuard offers managed vendor risk assessment services, partnering your organization with an UpGuard analyst and automating vendor assessments.
Deeply experienced in cyber risk, your UpGuard analyst brings a wealth of knowledge to your assessments, bolstering your team’s analytical prowess. UpGuard’s actionable reports lead the industry in quality, reliability, and ease of use, bringing a new level of precision to your vendor assessments. UpGuard analysts manage every aspect of vendor communication and analysis, ensuring you get insights—and can take action—sooner.
Learn more about UpGuard’s managed vendor risk assessment services here >
AI-driven monitoring tools
AI-powered monitoring tools provide continuous real-time insights into vendor risk posture, helping universities identify potential vulnerabilities and non-compliance issues quickly. These tools automate the monitoring process, reducing the need for manual checks and freeing up staff for strategic analysis.
AI-driven monitoring tools integrate seamlessly with VRM platforms, enabling swift responses to evolving threats and proactive measures to strengthen an institution's resilience. Continuous monitoring is a necessity for any VRM program, and utilizing artificial intelligence enhances this process by quickly scanning a vendor’s attack surface to identify any potential cybersecurity threats that could affect a higher education institution.
How UpGuard helps
UpGuard Vendor Risk’s monitoring features go beyond simple scanning mechanisms. Take advantage of security ratings, third-party risk monitoring, and four-party risk monitoring across supply chains with our robust monitoring capabilities.
Track vendor performance over time and get real-time insight into your vendor’s security performance, misconfiguration, and risk profile with our continuous monitoring features. UpGuard also offers fourth-party monitoring ability, meaning you can get instant insight into your supply chain and reduce risks along the way.
Explore more of UpGuard’s continuous monitoring features here >
Take advantage of always-on vendor risk management with UpGuard
UpGuard Vendor Risk is a third-party risk management platform designed to automate and streamline the vendor risk management process, including helping organizations conduct vendor risk assessments within a TPRM program.
By leveraging technology to simplify the often complex and time-consuming task of evaluating vendor risks, UpGuard Vendor Risk helps organizations efficiently assess, monitor, and mitigate risks associated with their vendors and suppliers. Additional Vendor Risk features include:
- Customizable templates: UpGuard provides customizable questionnaire templates that users can tailor to meet specific industry standards, regulatory requirements, and organizational risk profiles.
- Bulk distribution and tracking: Vendor Risk enables the distribution of questionnaires to multiple vendors simultaneously and tracks the progress of each questionnaire, sending reminders and updates as necessary.
- Centralized vendor information: UpGuard centralizes all vendor information, including questionnaire responses, in a single platform, making it easier for organizations to access, review, and analyze vendor data.
- Automated risk scoring: UpGuard automatically scores vendors based on their questionnaire responses and other relevant data, which helps organizations quickly assess vendor risk levels and prioritize follow-up actions.
- Continuous monitoring: Vendor Risk monitors vendors’ cybersecurity postures and alerts users to changes or emerging vulnerabilities. Real-time visibility into vendor risks helps organizations respond swiftly to potential threats before they become incidents.
- Compliance management: UpGuard Vendor Risk helps vendors reach regulatory compliance with relevant regulations and standards (like GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC 2), tracking vendors’ certification statuses and identifying gaps or issues that need addressing.
- Collaborative features: Vendor Risk facilitates collaboration between internal teams and vendors, enabling seamless communication and efficiently resolving identified issues or risks.
- Comprehensive reporting: UpGuard provides detailed reports and dashboards that offer insights into the organization’s overall vendor risk landscape, which can be used for internal risk management purposes and to demonstrate compliance to stakeholders, auditors, and regulators.
