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Vendor access and offboarding checklist

This checklist helps you stop “quiet back doors” by making vendor access visible, time-boxed, and provably removed, before it becomes a privacy incident or board-level problem.

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What it is

A practical, lifecycle checklist for vendor access. Before access is granted, while work is active, and after the relationship ends. It includes a simple vendor inventory sheet, risk tiering, and a 24-hour termination runbook for the day you need to cut access fast.

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Who it is for

Leaders in high-trust organizations who rely on vendors for systems, support, and integrations, but cannot quickly answer who has access, what it touches, and whether it was ever removed. It is built for teams without a full-time tech executive who still need clear ownership, proof, and a clock.

a spiral notebook with a notepad and pen on top of it

A vendor inventory template and tiering model that makes access decisions consistent and reviewable, especially for Tier 1 vendors that touch client data, money movement, credentials, or production systems.
A before, during, after checklist that covers both people access and machine access.
A 24-hour termination runbook with roles, first 15-minute containment steps, end-of-day cleanup, evidence capture, and a 7-day closeout plan.

What you will walk away with

FAQs

Why is vendor offboarding such a common source of incidents?

Because access often includes “invisible plumbing,” support logins, admin roles, tokens, integrations, and remote tools that keep working after a contract ends. If you only remove user accounts, the data connections can keep running.

What is the minimum we should track for each vendor?

Vendor purpose, systems touched, data type, access method, named vendor users, admin locations, integrations, tokens and keys, support channels, owners, contract dates, and where proof is stored. Start with your top 10 vendors.

Do we really need both a business owner and a technical owner?

Yes. The business owner owns the “why” and approves access. The technical owner owns the “how” and can execute removals. Without both, access becomes tribal knowledge and nobody can prove decisions.

What are the most common hidden access paths to look for?

SSO group membership, local app admin roles, shared inbox delegation, VPN and firewall rules, remote support agents, cloud roles, service accounts, API tokens and OAuth grants, webhooks, database users, and file-sharing links that bypass account controls.

How fast should we offboard a vendor?

Same day for Tier 1 vendors. Full cleanup can take a week, but the first removals matter most because most damage happens early.

What counts as “done” for offboarding?

Not “someone said they removed them.” Done means you can prove it: disabled accounts, removed access groups, revoked remote tools, rotated tokens, removed integrations, confirmed data return or deletion, captured timestamped evidence, and final sign-off by the business owner.

Gain access to the vendor access and offboarding checklist

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Turn output from the checklist into clear next steps

In 30 minutes, we will review your top 3 bottlenecks and top 3 trust risks. You will leave with a prioritized next step that fits your mission and capacity.