Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of Vala, Inc.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Vala develops AI software that helps VA-accredited attorneys, claims agents, and Veteran Service Organizations prepare VA disability claims more efficiently by analyzing records, identifying relevant evidence, and automating administrative workflows.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity to accomplish?

• Migrate our Microsoft 365 environment from a shared tenant to our own nonprofit tenant without disrupting business operations.
• Preserve all email history, calendars, contacts, and domain continuity throughout the migration.
• Ensure a clean migration with minimal downtime and maintain strong email authentication and deliverability.

SOLUTION

How did you find Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity?

Referral

Why did you select Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Shadowbear handled the end-to-end migration of our Microsoft 365 environment from a shared tenant to our own nonprofit tenant. The project included planning the migration, provisioning the new environment, migrating email history, calendars, contacts, and multiple domains, coordinating DNS cutovers, and validating that everything was functioning correctly afterward.

They also reviewed our email authentication and DNS configuration to help ensure a smooth transition with minimal downtime and strong email deliverability. The migration was completed successfully without any disruption to our day-to-day operations.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The migration was completed successfully with minimal downtime and no loss of email history, calendars, contacts, or domain continuity. We transitioned multiple domains to our new environment while maintaining business operations throughout the process. After the migration, email authentication and deliverability remained healthy, allowing us to continue communicating with customers and partners without interruption.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Project management was excellent. Ian communicated clearly throughout the engagement, kept us informed of each step, and was proactive about identifying what he needed before moving forward. The project stayed on schedule, and he was very responsive whenever we had questions or needed guidance. He made the migration process feel organized and low stress, and we always knew what to expect next.

What was your primary form of communication with Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

What impressed me most was the combination of technical expertise and practicality. Ian clearly knew the technical side of Microsoft 365 migrations, but he also understood the business impact of every decision. He focused on minimizing downtime, preserving our data, and making the transition as seamless as possible rather than overcomplicating the project. It felt like working with a trusted partner who genuinely cared about getting it right.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity could have done differently?

Nothing significant comes to mind. If anything, a short post-migration checklist or handoff document summarizing the final environment and configuration would be a nice addition for future reference, but the overall experience was excellent.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO of Shockoe, a software company. We design and develop custom mobile apps and digital experiences for major brands, leveraging a collaborative approach to ensure solutions align with each client's brand identity.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity?

We needed help with security compliance (PCI) and penetration testing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity helped us secure our website and mobile apps, ensuring we remained compliant with various audits conducted throughout the project's development and before deployment. The team focused on payment processing and integration security.

What is the team composition?

We worked with three teammates from Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity.

How did you come to work with Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity?

I found Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity through a local referral. We chose them because they were easy to work with, had the necessary experience for the type of work we needed, and were flexible enough to accommodate a tight schedule.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from November 2024–July 2025.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity's work helped us pass the standard PCI compliance audits and web security checks. We noticed a few improvements in our security posture based on the reports provided by Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity. Their regular updates helped us stay ahead of potential issues, so by the time the project was completed, we only had minor things to improve.

How did Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity perform from a project management standpoint?

Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity delivered on time and within budget. We communicated via regular meetings and emails.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We were impressed with Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity's proactiveness and flexibility to accommodate extra work during the development phase.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I didn't think they could improve anything on this particular project.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CTO of Phalanx

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Phalanx empowers business owners with higher productivity and deeper insights. Get document analytics and secure file sends.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity to accomplish?

• Improve cybersecurity posture
• Align with standards and compliance requirements

SOLUTION

How did you find Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity?

Referral

Why did you select Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity over others?

• High ratings
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Shadowbear took the stress out of cybersecurity for me

Before Shadowbear, I was constantly worried about phishing attacks slipping through and whether we’d be ready if an auditor showed up tomorrow. Now, I get clear visibility into risks and compliance doesn’t feel like this endless fire drill anymore. It’s freed me up to focus on building Phalanx instead of living in endless security dashboards not knowing exactly what needs to be done.

What I like most about Shadowbear is that they make security simple without cutting corners. VanguardWatch keeps our Google Workspace secure, and their team helps us stay compliant without piling extra work on my team. It gives me real peace of mind knowing Shadowbear got us covered.

If you’re thinking about Shadowbear, I’d say go for it. Their team feels like a true partner, easy to work with, quick to respond, and genuinely invested in keeping us safe. They’ve taken a huge weight off our shoulders by handling the hard cyber stuff so we can focus on growing the business.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

With Shadowbear, we now monitor about 33,000 logs a month. They surface roughly one major issue each quarter, and we’ve been able to close each out within a day or two. It’s given us peace of mind and let our team focus on the business instead of chasing alerts.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Shadowbear was highly responsive and professional in their project management. Even though our engagement is more of an ongoing service, they treated it like a structured project. They consistently delivered on time, investigating and resolving any findings within 48 hours, and always provide monthly reports so we know exactly what's going on. They were quick to respond to our questions and needs, and communicated clearly so we always knew where things stood.

What was your primary form of communication with Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

What stood out to us was their balance of technical expertise and accessibility. Cybersecurity vendors often drown you in jargon, but Shadowbear explained things in a way our leadership team could understand and act on. Their ability to turn thousands of logs into one clear, actionable finding (and then close the loop quickly!) made us feel secure without overwhelming us. They also provide peace of mind at a scale that would normally require a full-time internal team.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Shadowbear Managed Cybersecurity could have done differently?

The only thing we’d suggest is a bit more structure during onboarding. A more guided, step-by-step process or extra hand-holding early on would have made it even smoother. That said, once we were up and running, the ongoing service has been excellent.