Client Success Stories

San Diego Biotech Firm Achieves HIPAA Compliance

A 200-employee San Diego biotech company needed to establish a formal cybersecurity program and achieve both HIPAA and SOC 2 compliance to secure enterprise partnerships. With no existing security program, they turned to our team for a comprehensive security buildout.

The Challenge

The company had grown rapidly from a small research startup to a 200-employee organization handling sensitive patient health information and proprietary research data. They had no formal security program, no dedicated security staff, and were relying on ad hoc IT practices. Two potential enterprise partners required proof of HIPAA compliance and SOC 2 certification before moving forward with multi-million-dollar contracts.

• No formal cybersecurity program or dedicated security personnel
• Handling sensitive PHI and proprietary research data without adequate controls
• Needed HIPAA compliance and SOC 2 Type I for enterprise partnerships
• Aggressive 90-day timeline driven by partnership deadlines

Our Solution

We deployed a phased approach starting with a comprehensive gap assessment, followed by a security program buildout tailored to biotech operations, and complete compliance documentation for both HIPAA and SOC 2.

• Comprehensive gap assessment across all systems and processes
• Security program buildout including policies, procedures, and technical controls
• HIPAA-specific safeguards for PHI handling and research data protection
• SOC 2 Type I readiness preparation and auditor coordination
• Employee security awareness training program deployment
• Ongoing managed detection and response implementation

Defense Contractor Prevents Ransomware Attack

A San Diego defense contractor bound by CMMC requirements detected suspicious network activity but lacked the incident response capability to investigate and contain the threat. Our emergency response team contained the threat within 4 hours and subsequently helped the organization achieve CMMC Level 2 certification.

The Challenge

The contractor, a mid-size supplier in San Diego's defense industrial base, detected unusual network traffic patterns during routine monitoring. Their small IT team recognized the signatures of a potential ransomware deployment but did not have the forensic tools or expertise to investigate further. As a handler of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), any data exfiltration would have had severe contractual and national security implications.

• Suspicious network activity indicating potential ransomware staging
• No dedicated incident response capability or forensic expertise
• CMMC compliance obligations with CUI exposure risk
• Potential for severe contractual penalties and loss of clearance

Our Solution

We initiated emergency incident response within 30 minutes of contact, deploying forensic analysis and containment measures. After the immediate threat was neutralized, we implemented a comprehensive MDR solution and guided the organization through CMMC Level 2 certification.

• Emergency incident response with on-site team within 2 hours
• Full forensic analysis of affected systems and network traffic
• Immediate containment through network segmentation and endpoint isolation
• Managed Detection and Response (MDR) deployment across all endpoints
• CMMC Level 2 readiness assessment and remediation
• Ongoing security monitoring and threat hunting