The Hidden Cyber Gaps in Your Project Plan

Why Cyber Gaps Still Exist, Even in “Well-Run” Projects

Despite agile boards and RACI charts, these gaps keep appearing:

• Security is scoped out late or handed off to another team

• Project milestones don’t account for security reviews, just delivery

• PMs feel unqualified to ask technical security questions

• Business pressure pushes go-live, even when red flags are unresolved

And so the gaps stay buried until a breach, audit failure, or customer complaint brings them to light.

This is what I have witnessed time and time again:

“The risk wasn’t that we didn’t plan. The risk was what we assumed was already covered.”

What Smart Cyber PMs Do Differently

You don’t need to be a security expert.
But you do need to think like one.

Here’s what sharp cyber PMs build into their practice:

1. Embed Security Into Conversations, Not Just Documents

Instead of asking abstract questions, try these light but pointed nudges:

“Just curious who’s giving this a security review?”
“Do we know who picks this up if something breaks later?”
“Do we have any approvals or dependencies that might need extra scrutiny?”

These questions lower the barrier to talk about security without making it feel like an audit.

2. Trace the Ownership Gaps, That’s Where Risk Hides

Most breaches happen in the grey zones:

• Between vendors

• Between BAU and project delivery

• Between dev and ops

Draw the boundaries. Name the owners. Revisit them weekly.

3. Use "Assumption Checks" at Every Stage

Add this to your weekly agenda:

“What assumption could get us in trouble later?”

You’ll be surprised what comes up such as access, logging, data location, all missed in the Gantt chart.

4. Create a Culture of Speaking Up

Security blind spots often live in silence:

• Junior engineers aren’t sure it’s their job

• Senior stakeholders don’t want “negative” updates

Make it safe to say:

“Can we take a second look, just to be safe?”

That’s leadership, not paranoia.

7 Hidden Gaps to Hunt in Your Project

Here’s what often gets missed (until it’s too late):

• Unlogged access to sensitive data

• Legacy systems bypassed during upgrades

• Vendors without proper security SLAs

• No plan for handling incidents post-handover

• Default admin credentials left untouched

• Shadow IT used by delivery teams

• Risks marked “accepted” without business owner sign-off

Use this list to pressure test your next delivery review.

Weekly Action

Choose one meeting this week i.e. planning, stand-ups, or check-in.
Ask this one question:

“What’s the one cyber risk we’re not talking about enough?”

You don’t need the answer.
You just need to start the conversation.

Final Thought

“You don’t prevent cyber failures with tech alone.
You prevent them by asking what others won’t, before it’s too late”

P.S. Know a PM leading a cyber project? Forward this, they’ll thank you for the checklist that surfaces what dashboards can’t.

Next week: "The Cyber Risk Ownership Matrix" (ensure nothing falls through the cracks post-delivery) Or any topic mind? Do post it :)