How to Start a Cyber Security Company in USA? – Permits & Certifications

With a rapid growth in the digital word, cyber crimes are getting higher in numbers. According to 2019 IBM report, an average data breach costs around $4 million dollars. This is where businesses need cyber security systems in order to protect the company from risks such as data breaches, cyberattacks, hacking, scams and malware.

According to PayScale, companies are spending over $150 per hour on cyber security consultants to help protect their systems and networks from such malicious practices.

If you are thinking about starting your own cyber security firm to grab a piece of this rapidly growing profitable market, all you need to do is follow the below steps for a successful business.

9 Steps to Start Your Own Cyber Security Company

Step 1: Getting Professional Certifications & Permits

Before someone thinks about hiring you, they need to build trust with you. Having the right qualifications such as knowledge in the field of computer science, information technology, or a similar field, indicates you are on the right path.

However, these degrees do not provide real-world experience with clients want. In that case, you require certain certifications to build your credibility and to portray that your company has practical and relevant knowledge in this space.

Here is a list of few certifications available in the United States-

• Certified Ethical Hacker Certification (CEHC)
• GIAC Security Essentials Certification (GSEC)
• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
• Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP)
• CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CompTIA CySA+)
• ISACA’s Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT)
• ISACA’s Certified Information Security Manager (CISM)

While these certifications are integral, they are not the only way to establish a successful cyber security business. Planning is also important.

Step 2: Setting a Business Plan

Outlining your firm’s structure, strategies, objectives, budget, creating a blueprint of the business is most important.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), here are a few guidelines to what your business plan should look like.

• Making a summary of your business with reasoning
• Drafting a detailed description of the business
• Performing a competitive market analysis in order to determine target market & competitors
• Developing a legal structure of the business
• Deciding on the products & services
• Deciding marketing and sales strategy
• Planning the business budget
• Proper accounting & financial projections

Step 3: Defining the Target Market & Competitors

While some companies choose a specific industry as their target audience such as finance or healthcare, others choose a particular area of cyber security to present their deep knowledge of access control or network security based on their skill set and also on the market analysis. Knowing your competitors makes the process easier.

To run through this process, a SWOT analysis, which means identifying your companies’ strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats acts as a risk assessment for new cyber security solutions.

Step 4: Deciding the Company’s Legal Structure

It is important for a business to choose their legal structure which impacts their daily operations, taxes and financial risks.

According to the SBA, the 5 most common company structures are-

1. Sole Proprietorship
2. Partnership
3. Limited Liability Company (LLC)
4. S Corporation
5. C Corporation

Step 5: Obtaining Business License, Bank Account and Credit Card

Before setting up the business, you need to check on what business licenses or permits are required for a cyber security company like yours according to the state and local agencies.

 You do not require any federal license for this, while you might require General Liability Insurance and Worker’s Compensation Insurance. To know more about such licenses, read our blog on How to Start a Lawn Care Business in US.

Using your personal account for business transactions might not be a good idea. You need to set up a business bank account to save every penny, and also a business credit card to keep your personal and professional expenses separate.

A business credit card offers better terms and higher limits, also offers perks such as rewards, points and cash back.

Step 6: Setting up the Budget

In order to secure funding for your business, you have several options apart from personal funding such as loans, grants or angel investors.

According to a recent report, Venture Capital funding of cyber security companies hit over $10 billion dollars.

Managing and allocating your budget helps in saving money by-

• Setting sales revenue goals
• Understanding operating expenses
• Tracking cash flow
• Setting aside emergency fund

Step 7: Marketing Business Services

Marketing is the tool to deliver your products and services to the target audience. A well-designed website is a must to start with.

To make your website ranking good and SEO even better, don’t forget to choose a unique domain name, create an engaging customer interface and optimize your website for high SEO ranking.

While most of your customers tend to find a start-up through search engines or social media, it is very important for a business to have engaging content on platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

For offline marketing, networking is the most critical for any new business. Cyber security conferences are a good opportunity to meet potential customers and clients.

Step 8: Building a Professional Team

Through several rounds of interviews and background checks on potential employees, it is necessary for any business to hire quality staff and to verify their credentials and experience in order to be successful and competitive in the market.

Make sure you comply with the federal and state laws upon hiring your companies’ employees, that is, carrying worker’s compensation insurance in order to protect your company and employees.

It is also important to purchase fidelity bonds to protect the business from employee theft, fraud or illegal data access.

Step 9: Think of Future

The last step to lay down any new business is to invest in yourself and the companies’ future. This helps in protecting your cyber security business and limiting any risk which might occur in future.

Final Word

Once you finish all the above steps, congratulations you are already on your path to success. Finding a perfect team, marketing strategy and with relevant permits, certifications, legal and planning structure, there is nothing that can go wrong with setting up your new Cyber Security Company in the United States in 2021.