GRC stands for governance, risk management, and compliance. It is a control framework that ties policy, risk decisions, and legal or regulatory obligations into one operating model. In cybersecurity, GRC helps teams define who is responsible for security, what risks must be tracked, and how controls are proven with evidence.
GRC matters because many security failures are also process failures: reports go to the wrong team, logs are incomplete, access is too broad, or cases sit untriaged. In attacks, those gaps can hide misconduct, weaken audit trails, and delay response. In defense, mature GRC programs use clear ownership, role-based access control, retention rules, and consistent case handling. They also support internal reporting and speak-up channels, which can surface problems earlier and preserve the facts needed for investigation.