GDS Analytics

Supplier monitoring

Know when a supplier’s security changes, not just when you last checked

A supplier assessment is accurate on the day it is signed. Our supplier monitoring keeps it accurate afterwards, combining automated checks with review by your data protection officer, so the evidence behind your risk assessment’s stays current.

Available to all clients in Q1 2027

01External security checksEmail, encryption, headers, domainDaily
02Exposed servicesWhat the supplier’s systems reveal to the internetWeekly
03Data protection evidenceDPA, sub-processors, certificationsDaily
04Reviewed by your DPOInterpreted, then fed into your DPIAEvery change

Each layer builds on the one below. The last is the one software cannot do.

The problem

Supplier assessments go out of date quietly

Under Article 28 of the UK GDPR you may use only processors that provide sufficient guarantees, and under Article 5(2) you must be able to show it. Most organisations assess a supplier once, at procurement, and then hear nothing until renewal.

Suppliers change

They add sub-processors, move hosting, change their data processing terms or let a certification lapse, often with only a notice on their website.

Security drifts

Certificates expire, email protections are weakened, and old services are left exposed. None of it shows up in a questionnaire answered last year.

Scores lack context

Automated security ratings flag issues, but they cannot tell you whether a finding matters for the data you share with that supplier.

Our approach

Four layers, one view of each supplier

Automated monitoring and expert review usually come from different places. We put them together, so every change we detect is read by someone who knows your processing and can tell you what it means.

1

External security checks

Every day

  • Email protection against spoofing (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)
  • Encryption, certificate validity and expiry
  • Website security settings
  • Domain registration and DNS safeguards
2

Exposed services

Every week

  • Services the supplier’s systems make visible to the internet
  • Software versions those services report
  • Drawn from licensed Shodan data, including scans refreshed for each supplier
3

Data protection evidence

Every day

  • Privacy notice and data processing terms
  • Sub-processor list, and changes to it
  • Certifications claimed, such as ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials
  • A route for reporting vulnerabilities
4

Review by your DPO

Whenever something changes

  • Every significant finding read and put in context before you see it
  • Clear advice on whether action is needed
  • Your DPIA updated, with the dated evidence behind it

What you receive

Advice, not a dashboard to interpret

You will not be asked to make sense of a security score on your own. When a supplier changes something that matters, you hear from us with what changed, whether it affects your data and what, if anything, you should do.

Behind each piece of advice sits a dated scan and a published scoring method, so the evidence stands up if your assessments are ever questioned by a regulator, an auditor or a parent.

Review neededEdTech portfolio

A supplier has added a new sub-processor outside the UK

The supplier’s published sub-processor list now includes an AI provider processing data in the United States.

Our advice

This affects the DPIA we hold for you. We recommend that you confirm whether the feature is enabled for your account. We have drafted the questions for the supplier and will update the assessment once they reply.

Illustrative example

How it works for you

Built around the suppliers you actually use

Sector portfolios

Suppliers are grouped into portfolios such as EdTech, Finance or General. Platforms that many of our clients use are monitored once and shared, so you benefit from coverage of your sector from day one.

Your own suppliers

Niche or specialist suppliers can sit in a private portfolio that only you and we can see.

Linked to your Data Protection Impact Assessments

Each DPIA records the scan it relied on. When a later scan finds a material change, the DPIA is flagged for review automatically.

Responsible by design

Our scanner collects only what suppliers make publicly available and never tests logins or exploits weaknesses. Suppliers can see exactly how it works on our scanner page.

Questions

Common questions

When is it available?

Supplier monitoring will be available to all clients in Q1 2027. If you would like your suppliers included from the start, tell us which ones matter most to you.

Is there an extra charge?

No. Supplier monitoring is included for all of our clients.

Does this replace supplier questionnaires?

No. It sees what a supplier exposes to the internet and what it publishes, not its internal controls. It tells you when to ask questions, and our DPIAs still include the questions that only the supplier can answer.

Will our suppliers know they are being monitored?

Yes, if they look. Our scanner identifies itself and links to a public page explaining what it does, how to correct a finding and how to contact us. Nothing about the monitoring is hidden.

Do you publish supplier scores?

No. Results are shared only with clients who use the supplier concerned, and only after our review. Where we publish a summary assessment, it contains our commentary and the date, never a score.

Which suppliers can you monitor?

Any supplier with its own internet domain. Tell us which suppliers process your personal data and we will add any that are not already monitored.

Talk to us about your suppliers

Book a call and we will talk you through how monitoring works with your existing DPIAs and the suppliers you rely on most.

© 2026 GDS Analytics. All rights reserved.

GDS Analytics Limited. Registered in England No. 12389759. Registered office: 32 Lon Gwynfryn, Swansea, SA2 0TR. VAT No. 361 2779 87. ICO registration ZA667093.
Website by Melton Web Design Experts, SBNR