Security checklist before a funding round

By the QuantumSec team

Preparing for security due diligence isn't about improvising documents the week before closing: it's a short, concrete list of things to do 2 months ahead of time. This checklist summarizes, in priority order, what needs to be ready before you sit down with the investor's due diligence team.

What needs to be ready 6-8 weeks ahead

1. A recent product pentest (last 12 months), with critical findings already remediated and re-test evidence. 2. A documented information security policy, even a 3-4 page one. 3. An access management record: who has access to what systems, and why. 4. A basic incident response plan: who does what in the first 24 hours of an incident.

What helps but isn't essential at early stages

A vendor inventory and what data is shared with each one; a data retention and deletion policy; evidence of anti-phishing training for the team; and a one-page executive summary translating all of the above into non-technical language for the investment committee.

Common mistakes that delay closing

Presenting a pentest more than 18 months old (investors consider it stale), having no access management documentation even if the technical system is well designed, or improvising answers about past incidents instead of having an objective record, even a brief one.

How to prioritize if time is tight

If you can only do one thing, make it the pentest: it takes longest to schedule and carries the most weight in the assessment. The rest of the documentation (policies, records) can be drafted internally in days if you already know what practices you follow, even if they aren't written down yet.

FAQ

Do I need to hire someone external for this checklist?

The pentest does require a specialized provider. Policy and process documentation can be drafted internally, though external support usually speeds up the process and avoids formatting mistakes that due diligence analysts already recognize.

Does this checklist also work for a Series B or C?

This is the minimum baseline. At later stages, investors usually add requirements like SOC 2 or ISO 27001, which are larger-scope projects beyond this initial checklist.

What if my startup is very early and has none of this?

That's common at pre-seed or seed stage. Start with the pentest and the security policy: they're the two pieces asked about first and give the best maturity signal for the least effort.