Information Managed Security Solutions RFP

Request For Proposal

RFP is a document that an organization provides to announce a new project opportunity to interested parties through a bidding process. Requests for proposals are time-sensitive and subject to change. RFPs make an early submission during the procurement process, especially preliminary study, a vital part of the process.

Cybersecurity is an important consideration for business supply chain. Manufacturers are targets of attacks from individuals, organized-crime, and nation-states with intellectual property and data being the object of these attacks. As your business ecosystem and value chain expand, we work to increase your resilience against cyber threats. We create cybersecurity tailored RFI and RFP to your specific business needs. We defend against cyberattacks with proactive, focused, industry-relevant threat intelligence to give you the confidence that comes from knowing your business is secure.

Our team can respond or help you to draft RFPs, RFTs, RFIs, RFQs for computer network security from federal, state, and local governments. We have experience puting comprehensive RFP solicitations such as cyber security, cybersecurity, computer security, IT audit, technology audit, antivirus, firewall, fire wall, spyware, adware, computer virus, virus removal, virus protection, SPAM, malware, and other computer network security bids and RFPs.

Supporting the RFPs, RFTs, RFIs, RFQs Process

• Consider various teams’ perspectives (legal, IT, audit, etc.) to ensure support for the RFP and the assessment.

• Decide on a realistic timeline for the RFP process, allocating sufficient time for a responses and review.

• Confirm a realistic budget for the assessment, accounting for your requirements and market prices.

• Clarify how the RFP responses should be submitted (email, fax, paper mail, etc.) and who will receive them.

• Request itemized pricing from the RFP responders, to simplify the comparison of proposed services and costs.

• Define the process for receiving timely answers to the questions you may have after reviewing RFP responses.

Defining RFP Assessment Details

• What business and IT objectives, including compliance requirements, should the assessment support?

• What milestones and timeline (dates for starting, ending, performing testing, etc.) do you require?

• What reports and other deliverables do you expect to receive? (For reports, outline desired table of contents.)
  What type of a security assessment do you need (vulnerability assessment, penetration testing, etc.)?

• What is a “must have” and what is a “nice to have” for the desired assessment?

• Describe the size of the environment in scope for the assessment (number of systems, applications, etc.)

• Consider requiring an NDA if an RFP responder asks for sensitive details for preparing a response. 

Distributing the RFP

Decide whether you’ll benefit from a large pool of RFP responders or whether you prefer hand-picking the vendors whom you’ll invite to respond.

• Consider finding potential RFP responders by researching speakers and authors who’ve demonstrated security assessment expertise.

• If you maintain a list of firms interested in your RFPs, contact them; if you don’t, consider creating such a list.

• To meet promising RFP responder, participate in security events (SANS, Infragard, ISSA, OWASP, etc.).

• Request a commitment to respond by a specific date, so you know whether to expect a sufficient number of RFP responses; if necessary, invite additional responders.

Selecting the Security Assessment Vendor

Consider sharing the RFP with the vendors with whom you already have a good working relationship.
Define a process for handling the RFP responders’ questions fairly and comprehensively.

• Assess the expertise of the individuals the vendor will assign to your security assessment.

• Confirm the availability of the vendor’s staff in accordance to your timeline and location requirements.

• Consider inquiring about the background checks the vendor performed on the staff assigned to the project.

• Examine the vendor’s project management capabilities.

• Define, for yourself, vendor selection criteria and assign weighs to each factor based on its importance to you.

• Consider what information about the vendor’s companies you require (e.g., revenue, locations, etc.).

• Ask clarifying questions from RFP responses before making your selection.

• Inquire about the vendors’ references for the type of project you’re looking to conduct.

• Review the vendor’s sample assessment reports.