Westgate Sentinel Consulting | InsightsArticles on cyber security, IT assurance, and Microsoft cloud from Westgate Sentinel Consulting.https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/The Illusion of Compliancehttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/the-illusion-of-compliance/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/the-illusion-of-compliance/Most organisations believe they are compliant because they have completed a self-assessment, renewed a certification, or passed an audit. But compliance on paper and security in production are two very different things. The gap between them is precisely where breaches occur,...Wed, 15 Apr 2026 08:00:00 GMTBeyond Agile, beyond Waterfall: a third way to shiphttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/beyond-agile-beyond-waterfall/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/beyond-agile-beyond-waterfall/Agile and Waterfall both assumed a human coding bottleneck. AI-assisted delivery breaks that assumption.Fri, 10 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMTAI governance: four risk dimensions your board expects you to namehttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/ai-governance-four-minute-screen-ai-audit/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/ai-governance-four-minute-screen-ai-audit/Data boundary, policy, review gates, ownership. Plus a free four-minute risk screen.Tue, 07 Apr 2026 15:00:00 GMTCyber Essentials: why first attempts fail (and a four-minute pre-check)https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/cyber-essentials-first-time-failures-ce-ready/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/cyber-essentials-first-time-failures-ce-ready/The five control areas where evidence beats assumptions.Mon, 06 Apr 2026 09:30:00 GMTSix places Azure spend hides (and a free audit script)https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/azure-waste-six-patterns-sentinel-waste-finder/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/azure-waste-six-patterns-sentinel-waste-finder/Orphaned disks, idle VMs, tags, storage tier, reservations, and dev rightsizing.Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMTFifteen M365 controls we check in almost every tenanthttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/m365-fifteen-controls-sentinel-scout/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/m365-fifteen-controls-sentinel-scout/Legacy auth, sharing, logging, mail hardening, and admin sprawl: fifteen checks in one script.Sat, 04 Apr 2026 10:00:00 GMTFive AI coding agents, one founder: a secure MCP server in one eveninghttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/five-ai-agents-one-founder-mcp-server/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/five-ai-agents-one-founder-mcp-server/Twenty commits, thirteen tools, six review-only fixes: what multi-agent delivery looks like for a solo consultancy.Thu, 02 Apr 2026 09:00:00 GMTLicensing and contracts when the target leaves a grouphttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/licensing-contracts-when-the-target-leaves-a-group/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/licensing-contracts-when-the-target-leaves-a-group/Why Microsoft and SaaS licensing moves price and timeline in carve-outs.Wed, 18 Feb 2026 11:15:00 GMTTypical gaps we still see in Microsoft 365 reviewshttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/typical-gaps-we-see-in-microsoft-365-reviews/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/typical-gaps-we-see-in-microsoft-365-reviews/MFA, privileged access, patching, and scope. Patterns from real reviews.Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMTNine pillars: how we structure IT risk in mid-market dealshttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/nine-pillars-it-risk-in-mid-market-deals/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/nine-pillars-it-risk-in-mid-market-deals/How nine workstreams keep IT diligence proportionate in mid-market M&A.Wed, 03 Dec 2025 10:30:00 GMTIndependent IT assurance before the audithttps://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/independent-it-assurance-before-the-audit/https://westgatesentinel.co.uk/blog/independent-it-assurance-before-the-audit/Why boards ask for an independent IT view before certification, audit, or deal scrutiny.Wed, 12 Nov 2025 09:00:00 GMT