Compliance Isn’t Security: Why a Checklist Won’t Stop Cyberattacks

By Autumn Stambaugh, Senior Sales Engineer at Pentera

Think you're safe because you're compliant? Think again. Recent studies continue to highlight the concerning trend that compliance with major security frameworks does not necessarily prevent data breaches. For instance, in 2024, the average cost of a data breach reached an all-time high of $4.88 million, a 10% increase from the previous year.

The latest high-profile breaches at MGM Resorts, AT&T, and Ticketmaster prove that compliance alone won’t stop attackers. All of these organizations adhered to compliance frameworks, yet compliance alone didn’t stop these attacks.

Instead, adversaries exploited vulnerabilities that hadn’t been properly patched, misconfigurations that went undetected, and weak security controls. These organizations still suffered massive cyberattacks, resulting in data exposure, financial losses, and operational disruptions.

The harsh reality? Attackers get through the gaps of your compliance checklist.

The Disconnect Between Compliance and Security

Compliance frameworks like PCI-DSS, SEC, and DORA are designed to protect sensitive data and reduce risk, providing clear guidance on managing confidentiality, integrity, and availability. But these frameworks are just that—guidance. They don’t address the dynamic nature of today’s threats, nor do they assess the effectiveness of the controls organizations implement.

For many companies, compliance is treated as the finish line rather than a baseline for security. Organizations focus on passing audits, deploying firewalls, and implementing detection & response tools to satisfy regulatory mandates.

But compliance alone doesn’t measure whether these controls can withstand real-world threats. Without continuous validation, security teams remain blind to gaps that attackers can exploit.

A Proactive Approach: Testing Your Defenses Like an Attacker

Instead of relying on compliance as a security strategy, organizations must adopt a proactive approach that validates security controls against real-world attack methods. Here’s how:

Emulate Real-World Attacks

Simulated attacks expose security gaps that compliance frameworks can’t detect. Regular penetration testing, red teaming, and automated continuous validation allow organizations to measure how well their defenses perform against adversarial tactics. Security controls should be tested under realistic conditions—not just during compliance audits.

Tackle Credential Exposure

Compromised credentials remain one of the top attack vectors. Organizations must actively monitor for exposed credentials across dark web forums and paste sites, ensuring they can revoke access before attackers can exploit it. Enforcing strong password policies and multi-factor authentication (MFA) further reduces this risk.

Test and Update Continuously

Cyber threats evolve rapidly, and new vulnerabilities emerge daily. For example, the MOVEit Transfer zero-day vulnerability discovered in 2023 led to widespread data breaches, affecting hundreds of organizations. This highlights how attackers constantly exploit new weaknesses before security teams have a chance to respond.

Organizations should prioritize ongoing security testing, including:

Routine penetration tests to identify weak points. Incident response exercises to validate detection and response capabilities. Configuration reviews to prevent security drift over time.

Bridging the Gap: Compliance as a Starting Point

While compliance frameworks establish a strong foundation, they should never be treated as the finish line. Organizations must go beyond regulatory requirements by incorporating proactive security measures, such as:

Validating defenses regularly to ensure effectiveness Identifying gaps in vendor security and third-party integrations Eliminating security weaknesses caused by misconfigurations, poor access controls, and outdated policies.

Takeaway: Compliance Without Testing is a Risk

Attackers don’t care about compliance—they care about finding vulnerabilities. Companies that rely solely on regulatory checklists will continue to suffer breaches, even when fully certified. The key to security is not just meeting compliance requirements but actively testing, validating, and improving defenses against real-world attacks.

To stay ahead of attackers, organizations must treat compliance as a foundation, not a security strategy. Investing in continuous security validation, proactive testing, and adversary emulation ensures that security measures work when it matters most.

Don’t just check the box—test your security. Invest in automated security validation, schedule regular penetration tests, and continuously challenge your defenses to ensure they can withstand real-world attacks.

Sponsored and written by Pentera.