ISO 27001:2013 How will your organization benefit?

CIATEC Staff — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 08:30:37 +0000

What is ISO 27001:2013?

ISO/IEC 27001:2013 is the standard for Information Security Management; ISO 27001 is part of the ISO 27000 family of standards which helps organizations keep information assets secure. It is used by thousands of companies worldwide and allows them to establish a clear effective system for maintaining confidential data so that it is safe and secure, yet, available. This standard combines requirements for the security of procedures, the workforce, as well as the physical and technical aspects of the company.

As defined by the International Organization for Standardization, ISO/IEC 27001:2013 standard specifies the requirements for establishing, implementing, maintaining and continually improving an information security management system within the context of the organization. It also includes requirements for the assessment and treatment of information security risks tailored to the needs of the organization. The requirements set out in ISO/IEC 27001:2013 are generic and are intended to be applicable to all organizations, regardless of type, size or nature.

Why ISO 27001:2013?

Information security is not an IT issue, but rather a company-wide problem. Security risk management is a vital component for an effective security plan and there are many options available to companies. Therefore, a reputable, proven standard like ISO 27001 provides a comprehensive guideline to base a security system on and a plan for recovery in the case of a security breach.

The ISO 27001 standard includes requirements for investigating the company’s information security risks and considers the threats, vulnerabilities and impacts that are specific to that company. It consists of a guide for selecting and implementing a set of data security controls, measures and procedures to manage the most dangerous risks to the company. It also highlights the necessity of continuous monitoring so that the security procedures and risk treatments are kept up to date and continue to meet the organization’s individual information security needs on an on-going basis.

What value does ISO 27001 certification add to a business?

There are a number of important business benefits in adopting ISO 27001, whether applying it as a best practice or getting an official certification. Here is an infograph highlighting the most important ones.

ISO 27001 Benefits include:

Allow doing business globally
Improve planning and control
Achieve better human relations among different departments.
Improves your ability to recover your operations and continue business as usual
Reduces likelihood of facing prosecution and fines
Increase the ability to comply with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) approved by EU.

Make no mistake, achieving ISO 27001 is not a guarantee that information breaches will never occur, however by having a robust system in place, risks will be reduced and disruption and costs kept to a minimum.

Implementing ISO 27001 Process

Implementing ISO 27001 can often be seen as quite an administrative and procedural business process. There is a false belief that ISO 27001 implementation is a clerical and bureaucratic business route and that the severity of the standard limits the operations of a company.

An obvious consideration to make when deciding whether to implement ISO 27001 or not is the potential drain on time and resources. The hints below explain how to achieve an effective execution of ISO 27001.

Top tips on making ISO/IEC 27001 effective for you

Define the scope of the Information Security Management System.
Confirm the commitment of top management with respect to the information security management system.
Structure and resource your project, including advice on using consultants and an examination of the tools and resources available to help with your project.
Perform a gap analysis to compare actual performance (or status) with the desired performance.
Assess the potential risks to your business and identify areas that are vulnerable
Perform information security risk assessments at planned intervals or when significant changes are proposed or occur.
Ensure that the information security objectives are consistent with the information security policy.
Define the internal and external communications relevant to the information security management system.
Evaluate the information security performance and the effectiveness of the information security management system, maintaining a continual improvement momentum.
Implement information security training and awareness programs.
Conduct a periodic reassessment audits for the Information Security Management System.
Review the organization’s information security management system at planned intervals to ensure its continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness

Conclusion

The ISO 27001 method provides a company with the optimum framework on which to base a security strategy. It provides information on how to introduce and update security methods and a guideline to work off for internal compliance or external certification against the standard.

The use of ISO 27001 is the optimum method of guaranteeing information security of a company. This is not a stand-alone method however, and it requires a joint task-force of a culture respecting and valuing information and keeping it secure, through individual ownership and responsibility for information security.

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