CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

NCC Group vs UpGuard

NCC Group is a global cyber security and resilience company with over 2000 colleagues around the world. UpGuard sells tools that move third-party risk monitoring from static snapshots to continuous oversight. CISO Tribune files both under External attack surface management. This page sets the two records side by side: what each sells, where it is based, who owns and funds it, the customers it names and its recent news, each fact numbered to its source.

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  • NCC Group
  • UpGuard
NCC Group vs UpGuard: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
NCC GroupNCC Group is a global cyber security and resilience company with over 2000 colleagues around the world.nccgroup.comUpGuardUpGuard sells tools that move third-party risk monitoring from static snapshots to continuous oversight.upguard.com
What it sells
  • Penetration Testing Services[1]Security assessments that test an organization's systems to find weaknesses.
  • Continuous Penetration Testing[1]Ongoing testing of environments rather than a single point-in-time engagement.
  • Managed Extended Detection & Response (MXDR)[1]A managed service that monitors customer environments and detects and responds to threats, offered for Microsoft and Splunk tooling.
  • Attack Surface Management[1]Continuous monitoring of an organization's external-facing assets from an attacker's perspective.
  • Cyber Incident Response Retainer[1]A retainer service providing digital forensics and incident response support for critical assets.
  • Online Exposure Monitoring[1]Continuous monitoring of the surface, deep and dark web to reduce the risk and impact of cyber attacks.
  • User Risk[1][5][10]Human risk management that gives visibility into human risk and enables safe AI adoption.
  • Risk Automations[1][10]Risk automation that connects a risk stack to system APIs to automate discovery, notification and remediation.
  • Questionnaire AI[11]Automatically completes questionnaires using a customer's own security documentation.
Categories
Headquarters
Not stated on its pagesHobart, Australia[2]
Founded
Not stated on its pages2012[2]
Ownership and funding
Not stated on its pagesPrivately held[2][3]
Named customers
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Recent news
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: listed, seen November 10, 2026[13]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
  • G2: listed, seen November 10, 2026[3]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
NCC Group also addresses Hyperscalers and their clients that are undertaking cloud transformation. Industrial organizations facing regulatory complexity across global operations and supply chains are another group it addresses. Its customer examples include a private university and a major professional services client.Not written yet
Last verified
November 4, 2026September 27, 2026

Where they overlap

  • NCC Group and UpGuard are both filed under External attack surface management.

Where they differ, field by field

  • NCC Group's primary category is Penetration testing and red team services; UpGuard's is Third-party risk and security ratings.
  • NCC Group is also filed under Incident response and forensics and MDR and managed SOC. UpGuard is also filed under Human risk management.
  • NCC Group lists Penetration Testing Services, Continuous Penetration Testing, Managed Extended Detection & Response (MXDR), Attack Surface Management, Cyber Incident Response Retainer and 1 more. UpGuard lists User Risk, Risk Automations and Questionnaire AI.
  • UpGuard is headquartered in Hobart, Australia.
  • UpGuard was founded in 2012.
  • UpGuard is privately held.

What it sells: UpGuard

What User Risk does[1][5][10]
User Risk continuously detects unsanctioned applications running across a workforce and exposes over-privileged permissions and credential leaks. User Risk nudges employees mid-workflow and redirects them to approved corporate alternatives. User Risk sits in the browser and blocks unauthorized file uploads and copy-pastes.
What Risk Automations does[1][10]
UpGuard describes risk automation that connects a risk stack to system APIs to automate discovery, notification and remediation. The offering automates discovery, notification and resolution by integrating a risk stack.
What Questionnaire AI does[11]
Questionnaire AI automatically completes questionnaires using a customer's own security documentation. Customers upload documents such as a SOC 2 report, an information security report and previously completed questionnaires.

Questions about NCC Group and UpGuard

What do NCC Group and UpGuard sell?
NCC Group sells Penetration Testing Services, Continuous Penetration Testing, Managed Extended Detection & Response (MXDR), Attack Surface Management, Cyber Incident Response Retainer and 1 more. UpGuard sells User Risk, Risk Automations and Questionnaire AI.
Are NCC Group and UpGuard in the same category?
They share External attack surface management. NCC Group's primary category is Penetration testing and red team services and UpGuard's is Third-party risk and security ratings.
Where are NCC Group and UpGuard headquartered?
UpGuard is headquartered in Hobart, Australia.
When were NCC Group and UpGuard founded?
UpGuard was founded in 2012.
Who owns NCC Group and UpGuard?
UpGuard is privately held.
Who are NCC Group and UpGuard sold to?
NCC Group also addresses Hyperscalers and their clients that are undertaking cloud transformation.

About NCC Group

NCC Group is a global cyber security and resilience company with over 2000 colleagues around the world. NCC Group takes part in the NCSC’s Industry 100 Programme. NCC Group was an executive lunch sponsor at the 9th Annual Cybersecurity Summit of Auto-ISAC in Washington, D.C.[3][4]

NCC Group offers incident readiness services, crisis management and post-incident recovery guidance. NCC Group uses technical experts to assess the security of applications, hardware, networks and infrastructure. NCC Group performs 24/7/365 monitoring and security process management for organisations that augment, outsource or optimize their cyber security programs. NCC Group provides advisory expertise and hands-on implementation of preventative controls. NCC Group delivers intelligence and insights on advanced cyber threats and adversaries. NCC Group puts organisations in touch with an accredited Incident Response expert.[1][3]

NCC Group security consultants and certified ethical hackers carry out exercises that emulate the cyber attacks that networks, systems and applications could face. NCC Group's penetration testing combines automated tools with manual testing. NCC Group provides Red, Purple, and Black Teaming services. NCC Group assesses web and mobile applications for security vulnerabilities. NCC Group offers fully automated, semi-automated, and manual testing services. NCC Group reviews the secure configuration of devices and systems, including build reviews and network device reviews. NCC Group uses a proprietary configuration scanner that incorporates cloud-provider benchmarks. NCC Group reviews container and orchestration setups. NCC Group assesses smart contract implementations, Web3 integrations, and cryptographic protocols in blockchain applications. NCC Group assesses encryption configurations, cryptographic primitives, and security protocols. NCC Group conducts design and architecture reviews with client engineering groups throughout the development lifecycle. NCC Group offers continuous, contextualised security assurance for modern development lifecycles. NCC Group states that penetration testing helps meet compliance with industry regulations such as PCI DSS, ISO 27001, and GDPR.[1][5]

NCC Group provides managed security operations, bug bounty programs, financial fraud prevention, and continuous vulnerability scanning. NCC Group triages alerts and removes false positives in vulnerability management, with experts who can also help with remediation. NCC Group gives customers access to independent security researchers worldwide and builds, executes, and manages bug bounty programs. NCC Group offers a vulnerability and threat management platform powered by human expertise and artificial intelligence. NCC Group helps organizations see their external facing assets and attack surface from a hacker’s perspective.[1][6]

NCC Group delivers technical expertise to Hyperscalers and their clients so that cloud transformation is secure, compliant and strategically aligned. NCC Group runs blended cyber, physical and social engineering simulations. NCC Group delivers OT Incident Response in partnership with Dragos and adds it to a client's IT Retainer. NCC Group uses a custom-built OT network sensor that monitors traffic and feeds directly into its SOC. NCC Group physically audits client environments, assesses machinery and equipment, and reviews how it is connected to the wider network. NCC Group helps clients deploy and integrate modern identity solutions. NCC Group detects identity-based threats and attacks and responds through integrated SOC intelligence and continuous monitoring. NCC Group helps clients automate and optimize their identity security operations. NCC Group helps clients interpret supply chain regulations such as NIS2 and DORA. NCC Group assesses cyber risk throughout the M&A lifecycle. NCC Group provides buy-side and sell-side due diligence. NCC Group monitors and tracks adversary behavior across sectors and regions, including dark web activity linked to supply chain compromise.[7][8][9][10][11]

Tulane University is a private university in New Orleans. Tulane University selected NCC Group via a referral. A major professional services client asked NCC Group for assistance with the migration of its Security Operation Center, which included two data centers, onto the cloud. NCC Group cloud experts performed threat modeling, harmonized standard operating procedures, and created incident response plans for that migration.[1][5][6][7][8][9][11][12]

NCC Group on the record

Sources

NCC Group full record

  1. [1]nccgroup.comNCC Group · nccgroup.com · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Case Study: Digital Forensics for Tulane University | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]NCC Group | Leading Cyber Security & Managed ServicesNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]Reflections from the 2025 Auto-ISAC Cybersecurity Summit | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Penetration Testing Services | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Managed Security Services | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Cloud & Digital Transformation Security Solutions | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]Proactive Security | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Operational Technology (OT) Security | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Digital Identity Solutions | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Supply Chain & Third-Party Cyber Risk | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]Case Study: Cloud Migration for Professional Services | NCC GroupNCC Group · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  13. [13]NCC Group Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & FeaturesG2 · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier C

UpGuard full record

  1. [1]upguard.comUpGuard · upguard.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Upguard raises 75m in series c funding to accelerate market leadership in cyber risk posture managementUpGuard · upguard.com · published February 26, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]UpGuard Vendor Risk Reviews & Product DetailsG2 · undated page, accessed October 29, 2026 · Tier C
  4. [4]Continuous Third-Party Risk Monitoring | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]The #1 Cyber Risk Posture Management Platform | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Pricing For The UpGuard CRPM Platform | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Third-party Risk Assessment Software | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]Lucid Security Rating & Data Breaches | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]GiftPay Security Rating & Data Breaches | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]User Risk: A Human Risk Management Platform | UpGuardUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Free AI-Powered Security Questionnaires Done in MinutesUpGuard · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A

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