Four Shields, and Your Clients Decide Which One Matters
The Trusted Partner Network (TPN) used to have two tiers, Blue Shield and Gold Shield. Since September 2025 it has four: Blue, Silver, Gold and Gold Star. Classic Gold Shields issued under the old model stay valid until they expire.
TPN is clear about what a Shield is. Its assessments and Shield statuses are not an approval, a certification or a pass or fail. Each content owner, meaning each studio or streamer, makes its own risk-based decision and uses TPN as a baseline. So there is no single tier that every buyer requires. Netflix, Disney, Warner Bros., Apple TV+, Amazon and the rest each set their own expectations, and they can differ by client contract and even by title. The reliable way to find out is to ask the client's vendor security team which Shield, if any, they want to see.
What Is TPN Blue Shield?
Blue is the self-assessment tier. You complete the questionnaire in TPN+, TPN's platform, against the MPA Content Security Best Practices, once for each site and application in your scope. No assessor checks your answers and no evidence is required. Creating an account and completing the questionnaire is free, and it works as a gap analysis that only you can see. Publishing a Blue Shield in the TPN+ registry requires a TPN membership.
Blue is valid for one year from submission, and TPN recommends updating it annually.
Because nobody has verified the answers, a Blue Shield tells a client that you have gone through the Best Practices yourself. Whether that is enough is up to the client.
What Is TPN Silver Shield?
Silver means a TPN-accredited assessor has verified your answers against the evidence, and you have submitted a remediation plan for the gaps the assessor found. Nearly every assessment finds items to fix, so a remediation plan is a normal part of the process. Silver needs a TPN membership and is valid for two years from the publication of your assessment report.
What Is TPN Gold Shield?
Gold means every Best Practice gap from your assessment has been closed, and TPN SecOps has reviewed the evidence. It is valid for two years from the publication of the assessment report. TPN describes Gold as telling content owners that you meet the security expectations of most MPA member studios. That is TPN's wording about expectations, not a guarantee that any given client will accept it.
What Is TPN Gold Star Shield?
Gold Star means you have gone beyond the Best Practices and completed the Additional Recommendations too, again reviewed by TPN. Content owners sometimes ask for these extra measures on their most sensitive work. It is valid for two years from report publication.
The Path at a Glance
The Shields work as steps on one path, so most facilities climb them in order:
1. Gap Assessment
Complete the Blue questionnaire in TPN+, or have a consultant review your current state against the Best Practices. The output is a prioritized gap list: what you have, what you are missing, and what it will take to fix it.
2. Remediation
Implementing the missing controls. This usually involves network changes, access control configuration, physical security upgrades, and policy documentation. The documentation piece is often underestimated, because the Best Practices call for written policies and procedures, not just technical controls.
3. Pre-Assessment Readiness
A practice run before the assessor arrives. It catches remaining gaps, such as missing documentation, and prepares your team for interviews and walkthroughs.
4. Third-Party Assessment
A TPN-accredited assessor verifies your answers, on site or remotely, and the result is an assessment report. Submitting a remediation plan for the findings earns Silver. You choose the assessor from the directory on TPN's website and contract with them directly.
5. Close the Gaps
You track remediation in TPN+ and submit evidence for review by TPN. Closing every Best Practice item earns Gold. Closing the Additional Recommendations as well earns Gold Star. There is no fixed deadline, and partial progress still counts while you hold Silver.
How Long Does It Take?
It depends on your starting security posture, the size of your scope and the assessor's schedule. Remediation is usually the longest part, because network segmentation and policy documentation take time. TPN's own quick start guide suggests aiming for a first Shield within 90 days. That is a target rather than a promise.
The mistake most facilities make is underestimating the documentation work. The Best Practices expect written policies covering many areas, such as incident response, access management, media handling and visitor procedures. Many facilities have good controls in practice but nothing written down.
What Does a TPN Shield Cost?
Cost varies with your facility, your scope and what the gap assessment finds. TPN publishes its membership fees, which scale with annual gross revenue, at trustedpartnernetwork.org/membership. Membership fees do not include third-party assessment costs. Assessor fees are agreed directly between you and the assessor, so ask for quotes, and TPN suggests collecting more than one. The cost of remediation depends entirely on your gap list, so get the gap assessment done before you budget for it.
Do You Need a Shield If You Only Work with Independent Studios?
It depends on the client. TPN is voluntary, and each content owner decides what it asks of its vendors. What independent studios and production companies ask for varies, from a TPN status to a vendor security questionnaire to nothing at all. A Shield can still save you from answering the same questions again and again, because one assessment in TPN+ can be shared with content owners that take part in the program.
If you hope to move up to studio or streamer work, it is easier to get ready before a client asks than under a deadline.
Working with a TPN Consultant
Many facilities prepare on their own. The gap assessment, remediation and documentation work is manageable, but it takes significant internal time and someone with a working knowledge of the Best Practices.
A consultant who has helped other studios prepare knows which documentation gaps tend to slow things down and what the questionnaire expects for each control area. We help you get ready; the assessment itself is done by an independent TPN-accredited assessor, and a consultant cannot issue or promise a Shield.
Summary
| Blue | Silver | Gold | Gold Star | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who verifies | You (self-assessment) | TPN-accredited assessor | Assessor, plus TPN review of remediation | Assessor, plus TPN review of remediation |
| Where you stand | Questionnaire published | Remediation plan submitted | Every Best Practice gap closed | Best Practices and Additional Recommendations closed |
| Valid for | 1 year from submission | 2 years from report publication | 2 years from report publication | 2 years from report publication |
| TPN membership | Needed to publish in the registry | Required | Required | Required |
| Cost | Questionnaire is free | Membership fee plus assessor quote | Membership fee plus assessor quote | Membership fee plus assessor quote |
None of these is a certification or a pass or fail. Ask your clients which Shield they expect, then plan your route from there.
Written by the team at Clouds Agency, a Los Angeles creative and production consulting agency.