Startup Security Basics You Can't Skip

The eight controls every founder should put in place before raising a seed round.

Cybersecurity isn't only a technical problem — it's a behaviour problem, a process problem, and a leadership problem. In this article we walk through what's changed in the threat landscape this quarter, the controls that actually move the needle, and the practical first steps you can take today.

Why this matters now

Attackers continue to industrialise — using automation, leaked credentials, and well-tested social engineering scripts. The defenders winning today are not the ones with the biggest budgets; they're the ones with the clearest priorities.

What you can do this week

• Audit your highest-risk accounts and force MFA on every one.
• Run a 30-minute phishing tabletop with your team.
• Document your incident-response on-call rotation, even if it's one person.