Security Projects & Case Studies

THE CHALLENGE:

A Series A SaaS company with 200+ customers was conducting security reviews manually for every new feature launch. Reviews took 3-5 days, slowing down development velocity and frustrating product teams. With plans to triple their customer base, they needed security to scale without adding headcount.

THE SOLUTION:

Built an automated security review platform that integrated into their CI/CD pipeline, providing immediate security feedback to developers without manual intervention.

Key components:

• Automated static code analysis integrated into GitHub pull requests
• Dynamic API security testing in staging environments
• Dependency vulnerability scanning with auto-remediation recommendations
• Security metrics dashboard showing trends and high-risk areas
• Custom detection rules for their specific compliance requirements (HIPAA)

THE RESULTS:

• Reduced security review time from 3-5 days to <4 hours (95% reduction)
• Caught 40+ vulnerabilities before production in first 90 days
• Freed security team to focus on architecture instead of repetitive reviews
• Enabled 2x increase in deployment frequency without compromising security
• Zero security incidents in the 12 months following implementation

THE CHALLENGE:

A healthcare technology platform had outgrown their simple role-based permission system. They needed fine-grained access control where doctors could only see patients they're treating, administrators could manage their facility but not others, and insurance partners could access aggregate data but not PHI. Their existing codebase had permission checks scattered everywhere, making changes risky and slow.

THE SOLUTION:

Migrated from basic RBAC to an attribute-based access control (ABAC) model with centralized policy enforcement.

Key components:

• Designed ABAC model supporting complex healthcare access rules
• Centralized policy engine replacing scattered permission checks
• Database schema migration to support attribute-based queries
• Policy-as-code framework enabling non-engineers to update rules
• Comprehensive audit logging for HIPAA compliance

THE RESULTS:

• Reduced unauthorized access attempts by 42% through better enforcement
• Cut time to implement new permission rules from 2 weeks to 2 days
• Reduced permission-related code by 60% through centralization
• Passed HIPAA audit with zero access control findings
• Enabled new business model (facility-specific pricing) previously impossible

THE CHALLENGE:

An e-commerce platform detected unusual API activity suggesting unauthorized access to customer data. They weren't sure what was compromised, how the attacker got in, or if the breach was still active. With thousands of customers potentially affected and a legal obligation to report within 72 hours, they needed fast, definitive answers.

THE SOLUTION:

Led complete incident response from detection through remediation and post-mortem.

THE RESULTS:

• Fully contained breach within 18 hours of engagement
• Determined exact scope for accurate customer notification
• Provided documentation meeting legal reporting requirements
• Zero additional customer records compromised after containment
• Prevented estimated $200K+ in potential regulatory fines through proper handling
• Company maintained customer trust through transparent, professional response

THE CHALLENGE:

An AI-powered analytics platform was preparing for Series B funding. Investors were asking detailed questions about AI security: "How do you prevent prompt injection? What's your model governance? How do you secure training data?" The team had strong ML expertise but limited security experience, and generic security consultants didn't understand AI-specific risks.

THE SOLUTION:

Implemented comprehensive AI security framework based on Amazon's AI security standards, adapted for their startup scale.

Key components:

• Threat model for their specific AI architecture (fine-tuned LLMs for data analysis)
• Input validation and sanitization to prevent prompt injection attacks
• Model output filtering to prevent data leakage
• Secure model training pipeline with data lineage tracking
• Access controls for model artifacts and training data
• Monitoring for adversarial inputs and model behavior anomalies

THE RESULTS:

• Identified and fixed 12 AI-specific security vulnerabilities
• Passed investor security review with zero critical findings
• Closed Series B at $18M valuation (security cited as competitive advantage)
• Reduced AI model deployment security review from 2 weeks to 2 days
• Framework now used for 15+ models in production
• Zero AI security incidents in 18 months since implementation

THE CHALLENGE:

A fast-growing SaaS company needed SOC 2 Type II certification to close enterprise deals, but had been moving too fast to think about compliance. They had 6 months until their largest prospect's deadline and no idea where they stood on SOC 2 requirements.

THE SOLUTION:

Conducted gap analysis and implemented security controls to achieve SOC 2 Type II compliance.

Key components:

• Access control policies and implementation (principle of least privilege)
• Encryption at rest and in transit across all data stores
• Logging and monitoring infrastructure for audit trails
• Incident response procedures and documentation
• Vendor risk management program
• Security awareness training program
• Business continuity and disaster recovery plans
• Change management and code review processes

THE RESULTS:

• Passed SOC 2 Type II audit on first attempt with zero findings
• Completed in 5.5 months (ahead of 6-month deadline)
• Closed $1.2M enterprise deal that required certification
• Unlocked 12+ additional enterprise sales opportunities
• Improved actual security posture (not just paperwork compliance)
• Built compliance foundation for future certifications (ISO 27001, HIPAA)