Why Your Organisation Needs a CISO in Switzerland
Since 1 April 2025, operators of critical infrastructure in Switzerland must report cyberattacks to the Federal Office for Cybersecurity (BACS) within 24 hours under the Information Security Act (ISA). Banks and insurers follow FINMA Circular 2023/1 on operational risks and resilience, and the revised Federal Act on Data Protection requires adequate data security. Many organisations need a CISO to steer this, but not as a full-time position.
With our outsourced CISO (virtual CISO, vCISO) service, an experienced information security leader takes on the CISO role for your organisation as a managed service — a few days per month, at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire, and without recruitment or turnover risk.
What Your vCISO Takes Care Of
- Security strategy and roadmap — A clear information security strategy aligned with your business objectives, risk appetite and regulatory obligations
- Governance and policies — Security organisation, roles and responsibilities, and a complete set of information security policies
- Risk management — Identification, assessment and treatment of information security risks, including third-party and supply chain risks
- Regulatory compliance — Mapping the cybersecurity requirements that apply to you and keeping evidence ready for regulators, auditors and customers
- ISO 27001 certification — Leading the implementation of your Information Security Management System (ISMS) up to the certification audit
- Incident readiness — Incident response plan, reporting procedures within the legal deadlines and regular exercises
- Management reporting — Security metrics and risks translated into business language for management and the board
- Awareness — Security awareness training so that your employees recognise and report threats
Cybersecurity Requirements in Switzerland
Your vCISO keeps your security programme aligned with the frameworks that apply to your organisation:
- Information Security Act (ISA) — Reporting of cyberattacks on critical infrastructure to the BACS within 24 hours
- FINMA Circular 2023/1 — Operational risks and resilience, including ICT and cyber risks, for banks and insurers
- ICT Minimum Standard — The Federal Office for National Economic Supply’s baseline for the resilience of ICT
- Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP) — Data security appropriate to the risk under the revised FADP
- ISO/IEC 27001 — The international standard for information security management systems
How Does It Work?
Assessment & Strategy
We assess your security posture against the applicable requirements and agree a prioritised security roadmap with you.
Implementation
Your vCISO leads the security programme: governance, policies, risk treatment and technical controls with your IT team and providers.
Ongoing Leadership
Regular risk reviews, incident handling, audit preparation and management reporting keep your programme up to date.
Why ResGuard?
- Experienced security leaders who have built and run ISMS programmes in regulated industries
- The ResGuard Compliance Manager platform for your ISMS, risks, policies, tasks and audit evidence
- Flexible scope — the number of days per month adapts to the phase of your programme
- Need a fast route to certification? Combine your vCISO with our ISMS workshop for ISO 27001