[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":181},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-launch/acquisition-ready":3},{"id":4,"title":5,"body":6,"category":161,"date":162,"dateModified":162,"description":163,"draft":164,"extension":165,"faq":166,"featured":164,"headerVariant":167,"image":166,"keywords":166,"meta":168,"navigation":169,"ogDescription":170,"ogTitle":171,"path":172,"readTime":166,"schemaOrg":173,"schemaType":174,"seo":175,"sitemap":176,"stem":177,"tags":178,"twitterCard":179,"__hash__":180},"blog/blog/launch/acquisition-ready.md","Acquisition Ready Security Checklist: 16 Items Before M&A Due Diligence",{"type":7,"value":8,"toc":155},"minimark",[9,19,22,48,76,99,121,126,129,132],[10,11,12,16],"tldr",{},[13,14,15],"p",{},"TL;DR",[13,17,18],{},"M&A due diligence scrutinizes everything. Before acquisition talks, ensure clean code ownership, no security skeletons, documented architecture, clear data practices, and all compliance in order. Security issues discovered during due diligence reduce valuations or kill deals.",[20,21],"print-button",{},[23,24,27,32,36,40,44],"checklist-section",{"count":25,"title":26},"5","Code and IP",[28,29],"checklist-item",{"description":30,"label":31},"All code written by employees or properly licensed.","Code ownership is clear",[28,33],{"description":34,"label":35},"Full history scanned for credentials.","No secrets in repository",[28,37],{"description":38,"label":39},"Know all licenses in your dependency tree.","Open source licenses documented",[28,41],{"description":42,"label":43},"License conflicts can be deal-breakers.","No GPL in proprietary code",[28,45],{"description":46,"label":47},"Clear diagrams and documentation.","Architecture documented",[23,49,52,56,60,64,68,72],{"count":50,"title":51},"6","Security Posture",[28,53],{"description":54,"label":55},"Dependencies and code scanned and clean.","No known vulnerabilities",[28,57],{"description":58,"label":59},"Past incidents and resolutions on record.","Security incident history documented",[28,61],{"description":62,"label":63},"Recent third-party security assessment.","Penetration test completed",[28,65],{"description":66,"label":67},"Who has access to what and why.","Access controls documented",[28,69],{"description":70,"label":71},"How data is protected at rest and in transit.","Encryption practices documented",[28,73],{"description":74,"label":75},"Proven ability to recover from disasters.","Backup and recovery tested",[23,77,79,83,87,91,95],{"count":25,"title":78},"Compliance and Legal",[28,80],{"description":81,"label":82},"GDPR, CCPA, etc. as applicable.","Privacy compliance verified",[28,84],{"description":85,"label":86},"DPAs with all vendors and customers.","Data processing agreements in place",[28,88],{"description":89,"label":90},"SOC 2, ISO 27001 if applicable.","Security certifications current",[28,92],{"description":93,"label":94},"Cyber liability insurance details.","Insurance coverage documented",[28,96],{"description":97,"label":98},"Third-party risk is your risk.","Vendor security assessed",[100,101,102,109,115],"faq-section",{},[103,104,106],"faq-item",{"question":105},"What security issues kill M&A deals?",[13,107,108],{},"Major breaches that weren't disclosed, pervasive security debt that's expensive to fix, unclear data practices that create liability, and license violations that threaten the IP. Being honest about issues is better than having them discovered.",[103,110,112],{"question":111},"Do I need SOC 2 for acquisition?",[13,113,114],{},"Not always, but it helps significantly. Enterprise acquirers often require it. Even without certification, having documented security controls that could pass SOC 2 scrutiny is valuable.",[103,116,118],{"question":117},"How do security issues affect valuation?",[13,119,120],{},"Directly. Acquirers will discount for remediation costs, potential liabilities, and integration complexity. Clean security can be a competitive advantage when multiple companies are being evaluated.",[122,123,125],"h3",{"id":124},"acquisition-ready","Acquisition Ready",[13,127,128],{},"Get your security in order before due diligence.",[13,130,131],{},"Start Free Scan",[133,134,135,141,146,151,153],"related-articles",{},[136,137],"related-card",{"description":138,"href":139,"title":140},"Security checklist for public API launches. 16 essential items to verify before opening your API to external developers,","/blog/launch/api-public-launch","API Public Launch Security Checklist: 16 Items Before Opening Your API",[136,142],{"description":143,"href":144,"title":145},"Security checklist for beta launches. 14 essential items to verify before inviting your first beta users, including data","/blog/launch/beta-launch","Beta Launch Security Checklist: 14 Items Before Inviting Beta Users",[136,147],{"description":148,"href":149,"title":150},"Pre-launch security checklist for Bolt.new apps. 16 critical items to check before deploying your Bolt-generated applica","/blog/launch/bolt-app","Bolt.new App Launch Security Checklist: 16 Items Before Going Live",[136,152],{"description":143,"href":144,"title":145},[136,154],{"description":148,"href":149,"title":150},{"title":156,"searchDepth":157,"depth":157,"links":158},"",2,[159],{"id":124,"depth":160,"text":125},3,"launch","2026-02-04","Security checklist for acquisition readiness. 16 essential items to verify before M&A due diligence, covering code quality, compliance, and documentation.",false,"md",null,"orange",{},true,"Security checklist for acquisition readiness. 16 items before M&A due diligence.","Acquisition Ready Security Checklist","/blog/launch/acquisition-ready","[object Object]","Article",{"title":5,"description":163},{"loc":172},"blog/launch/acquisition-ready",[],"summary_large_image","V8922SAdv3cDBX7wyLcP9l04CO0H3DcpGxCGVyi9hzw",1775843936052]