What are the penalties for not meeting CERT-In compliance?

Non-compliance carries fines up to ₹1 crore per violation, and responsible officers including CEOs can face personal imprisonment. For most MSMEs, a single fine at this level isn't a setback — it's a shutdown. Enforcement is already active and audits are underway across sectors.

How long does a CERT-In audit take for an MSME?

Most MSME audits take 2 to 4 weeks from initiation to final report. Businesses with continuous monitoring and organised documentation move through significantly faster. Preparation is the variable — not the audit itself.

What are the most common issues found during CERT-In audits?

The same gaps appear consistently — logs not retained in India, no documented incident response plan, access permissions never revoked when employees leave, and no appointed cybersecurity owner. None of these are technical failures. They are process failures — things never assigned to anyone.

How do I prepare my MSME for a CERT-In audit?

Start at least 3 months before your audit date. Run an honest gap assessment against all 15 controls, prioritise logging, incident response, and access control first, then organise your evidence. Auditors don't just check if controls exist — they check if you can prove they've been consistently maintained.

Can a managed security provider handle CERT-In compliance for us?

Yes — and for most MSMEs it's the most practical path. Building internal capability to meet all 15 controls is beyond the resource capacity of most small businesses. xIoTz deploys a unified compliance platform in under 2 hours, covering all controls continuously — not just at audit time.

What cyber threats are Indian MSMEs most vulnerable to?

Phishing, ransomware, and credential theft are the three most common attack vectors. Attackers don't need sophisticated tools — they need one untrained employee, one unpatched system, or one reused password. The 15 CERT-In controls exist specifically to close these entry points.

xIoTz Wins iDEX DISC IX Challenge for Indian Navy

The Challenge

The problem statement was issued directly by the Indian Navy based on a real operational requirement — not a hypothetical brief. It called specifically for an indigenous SIEM solution built on an open-source framework, capable of operating at the standards demanded by a naval command.

xIoTz answered that call.

What xIoTz Built?

xIoTz’s indigenous SIEM solution was built to meet one standard — the one the Indian Navy set. Developed on an open-source framework, evaluated against real operational requirements, and selected by India’s naval command, the platform represents what happens when a cybersecurity company builds without compromise.

This is not a product adapted for defence. It was built to belong there.

Three Things This Win Proves

01 — Indigenous is not a compromise.

The challenge specifically called for an indigenous solution on open-source foundations. xIoTz didn’t adapt a foreign product — they built one. The Indian Navy’s selection is direct validation that indigenous, open-source SIEM can meet the country’s highest operational security standards.

02 — The platform scales from MSME to naval command.

A 10-person business and an Indian Navy installation have very different environments. xIoTz’s architecture handles both. That is not an accident — it is the result of building zero-trust, unified security from first principles rather than patching together tools designed for someone else.

03 — Bootstrapped. No shortcuts. Still winning.

xIoTz has taken no Series A, no external runway. The company has been building on market terms since Day 0 — and this win now sits alongside National Technology Awards 2023, IIT Kanpur incubation, DSCI acceleration, and a direct contribution to India’s national MSME cybersecurity framework.

India asked for an indigenous SIEM. xIoTz built it.

The Indian Navy evaluated it. The Ministry of Defence recognised it. A cybersecurity company, bootstrapped and profitable, built something the country’s naval command could trust.

About xIoTz — Cyber Assurance for MSMEs India

Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Bengaluru, India, xIoTz Private Limited is a cybersecurity company on a mission to democratise cyber assurance for MSMEs and enterprises across India. Built in India, for India and the world.

Learn more at xiotz.com →