Procurement, security, and risk · 7 min read
Vendor due diligence is the practice of verifying - before you commit - that a vendor won't introduce risk you can't manage. It spans more than security questionnaires. Use this checklist to cover the dimensions that actually matter.
Published 14 June 2026
Download the guide(PDF)Verify controls against your obligations, not just certificates.
Confirm the paper matches the pitch.
A cheaper vendor that fails is the most expensive option.
The most overlooked dimension.
A structured set of checks a buyer runs before committing to a vendor, spanning security and data handling, compliance and legal terms, financial and operational stability, references, and concentration/exit risk. The most overlooked dimension is how hard and expensive the vendor would be to replace.
Financial stability, named-staff delivery, sub-processor disclosure, liability and indemnity terms, data-return on exit, and concentration risk - how dependent you'd be and what it would cost to switch away.
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