Construction and real estate businesses depend on connected platforms, shared information, and outside partners to keep projects and transactions moving. Building information modeling, connected equipment, and cloud-based tools can improve coordination, but they also expand cyber exposure as more parties gain access to systems and sensitive information.
Cyber risks can affect operations in ways that go far beyond stolen passwords. A fraudulent payment instruction can put project funds at risk, compromised contractor access can expose shared sensitive documents, and an outage involving a critical platform can interrupt schedules, approvals, and financial reporting.
For construction executives and real estate developers, cybersecurity deserves attention alongside project delivery, liquidity, and operational continuity. Leaders need to understand where risks are developing and who is responsible for managing them.
What Are the Biggest Cybersecurity Risks Facing Construction and Real Estate Companies?
Construction and real estate companies face cybersecurity risks involving fraudulent payments, compromised vendor access, ransomware, connected jobsite or building systems, and exposure of sensitive project and transaction data. Leaders can reduce exposure by assessing critical workflows, verifying payment changes, limiting third-party permissions, testing incident response and recovery plans, and assigning clear responsibility for ongoing cybersecurity oversight.
Why Cyber Risk Is Growing Across Construction and Real Estate
Construction and real estate businesses rely on extensive networks of partners to keep projects and transactions moving.
Construction companies coordinate with owners, subcontractors, designers, and suppliers through shared platforms and frequent information exchanges. Real estate developers work with lenders, investors, attorneys, property managers, and transaction partners who need access to sensitive financial and project records.
These relationships often require external accounts, shared applications, and access to business systems. As more parties become involved, it becomes harder to monitor who has access to sensitive information, whether permissions remain appropriate, and which communications can be trusted. AI-assisted impersonation and cloned voices can further complicate the verification of financial instructions and other sensitive requests.
Managing these risks requires coordination across finance, IT, operations, and outside providers. Without clear responsibility for cybersecurity oversight, gaps can develop between teams, leaving potential vulnerabilities unaddressed.
Five Cyber Risks Industry Leaders Should Understand
1. Payment Fraud and Business Email Compromise
Project payments depend on instructions exchanged among contractors, lenders, and other partners. An impersonated email requesting new bank details can divert a construction draw, vendor payment, or closing transfer.
The National Association of REALTORS cited the FBI’s 2025 report of more than 12,000 real estate-related complaints and $275 million in losses. These figures cover real estate broadly, but here are a few concepts to address the associated risks:
- Verify banking changes using a known phone number.
- Keep payment setup separate from approval.
- Document who can authorize exceptions.
2. Third-Party Access and Shared Platforms
Outside partners need project access, but permissions can persist after assignments end. Contractors and property managers may retain credentials to drawings, schedules, or transaction files.
Excess permissions can expand a compromised vendor account’s reach. Make access removal part of project closeout by:
- Keeping a current list of outside accounts.
- Limiting access to assigned work.
- Removing permissions when projects or contracts end.
- Setting incident reporting expectations for vendors.
3. Ransomware and Operational Disruption
Ransomware or a platform outage can stop crews from viewing schedules, sending instructions, or documenting changes. Delays can affect labor coordination, cash flow, and contractual milestones. Start recovery planning with the work that cannot wait, including:
- Identify critical systems and operations.
- Set recovery priorities.
- Test backups before an outage.
- Practice restoring records and workflows within acceptable timeframes.
Use the results to plan field communications and payment approvals during an outage.
4. Sensitive Project and Transaction Information
Construction firms handle bids, employee records, and plans. Developers share financing and due diligence files with partners. Exposure can create competitive, legal, and contractual consequences even when systems remain operational.
Any access granted should align with a legitimate business need. Build these protections into document handling by:
- Identifying records requiring restricted access.
- Limiting who can view, share, or retain them.
- Using multifactor authentication for accounts containing sensitive records.
5. Connected Jobsite and Building Technology
Connected cameras, jobsite devices (tablets and laptops), and building controls may use vendor-managed networks. Disruption can affect physical access or property operations, even if office systems remain available.
Identify essential devices and who maintains them. Conduct routine reviews of account security, updates, and contingency procedures with each of these providers.
The Business Impact of Cyber Incidents
Exposures raise one key question for executives:
Which failure could jeopardize project delivery, available funds, or commitments to an owner, lender, or tenant?
Rank each threat by likely financial loss, acceptable downtime, and contractual consequences, which can be achieved through a risk assessment.
- Finance can assess payment and liquidity exposure.
- Operations can set recovery priorities.
- Involve legal and compliance advisors for notification obligations.
Together, these perspectives show where control gaps may carry the greatest financial or operational consequences. IS Assurance and Advisory Services can help evaluate technology controls in the context of those business priorities.
What Should Construction and Real Estate Executives Be Asking?
Turn your ranking of cyber threats into decisions, owners, and deadlines. Ask questions that connect technical findings with operational readiness.
- Which projects or transactions depend on systems we cannot afford to lose?
- How do we independently verify changes to banking instructions?
- Who approves vendor access, and who confirms that it ends?
- Who leads an incident response and communicates with affected partners?
- Have we tested recovery for the systems our most important work requires?
- Which unresolved findings require executive attention, and who owns the next action?
How to Build a More Resilient Cybersecurity Strategy
Your answers should inform a security plan with assigned responsibilities. Focus first on the processes whose failure would disrupt essential work.
- Prioritize critical workflows. Map high-value payments, project platforms, transaction records, connected systems, and key vendors. Rank the consequences of interruption or misuse.
- Check existing controls. Review payment verification, access permissions, and vendor oversight. Cybersecurity Assessments can help identify gaps and prioritize remediation based on potential business impact.
- Practice response decisions. Test a ransomware, payment fraud, or system outage scenario with finance, operations, IT, and relevant providers
- Keep someone accountable. Assign a leader to coordinate improvements and report unresolved risks as projects and vendors change. Fractional CISO services can support that ongoing oversight alongside your existing IT resources.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 emphasizes governance alongside technical safeguards. That approach gives leaders a basis for monitoring risk decisions and remediation progress.
Keep Cybersecurity Oversight Connected to Business Decisions
Construction and real estate businesses cannot avoid exchanging critical information with external partners, but they can decide which payments warrant extra verification, which systems must be recovered first, and who follows through when a risk is identified.
Keep those decisions visible as project teams, vendors, and technology change. An assessment provides a starting point, while ongoing oversight helps ensure safeguards become part of routine operations.
That accountability belongs in the same leadership conversations as cash flow, delivery timelines, and contractual obligations.
Ready to bring greater accountability to your cybersecurity strategy? Connect with RKL’s Fractional CISO team to discuss your risks, current controls, and next steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is a fractional CISO different from an IT provider?
IT providers manage technology and technical support. Fractional CISOs focus on security leadership, including setting priorities, overseeing policies, and coordinating risk across departments and vendors.
How often should a construction or real estate company review cyber risks?
Review material changes in vendors, systems, projects, and payment processes as they occur. Reassess overall risk and unresolved findings on a regular schedule, with additional reviews after significant incidents or operational changes. The appropriate cadence depends on exposure and contractual requirements.
Who should participate in a Cybersecurity Risk Assessment?
Include IT and security personnel alongside finance, operations, and leaders who understand project delivery or real estate transactions. Procurement, legal, and relevant vendors may need to contribute where risks involve contracts, payments, or outside systems.
Should a company review cybersecurity before a new development or major project?
Yes. Early review can identify payment approval controls, sensitive data flows, vendor access needs, and dependencies on connected technology before those arrangements become difficult to change. Revisit the assessment as partners and project requirements evolve.
