What is ISO 27001?
ISO 27001 is an international standard on how to manage information security.
It provides a framework of standards for how a modern organisation should manage any risk that is associated with information security threats, including policies, and staff training.
Why is ISO 27001 important to your business?
Information security is widely considered to be a key organisational risk and frequently appears on the Board’s agenda.
By the increased risk that it poses makes it essential for organisations to want to implement the highest information security standards, which is why ISO 27001 is so important.
The ISO 27001 standard helps an organisation understand where its strengths and weaknesses lie as part of risk management.
If you continuously engage with the risk in your organisation you can demonstrate to your customers that you are constantly working to protect all information in your company.
This promotes standardisation across your organisational policies but gives you a host of other business benefits which is what we will move on to next.
What are the benefits of ISO 27001?
Reduce your organisations information security and data protection risks
ISO 27001 has a set of 14 controls covering various aspects of information security, it demands the need for information security policies and other mandatory documentation. One of the fundamental underpinnings of ISO 27001 is continual improvement. This ensures that your organisation is always engaged with improving its security posture regularly which reduces the level of risk as you’re always on top of strengths and weaknesses.
Help attract new customers
Many customers will favour an organisation who can adequately demonstrate that they commit to information security. As ISO 27001 holds an international reputation for information security meeting high standards new customers will be confident that you can be trusted with their information and business.
As well as attracting new customers it can help your organisation win tenders. Having ISO 27001 in place allows an easy and efficient demonstration of your competence rather than having to prepare the evidence that you have met all the information security requirements. You can simply detail your accredited ISO 27001 certification.
Help retain existing clients, saving time and resources
Keeping your current clients is a lot easier than trying to gain new customers.
By demonstrating to your existing client base that you have taken a proactive step regarding information security measures will give them more confidence in your approach.
They are likely to trust you a lot more with their information and if they are happy with your approach will be a customer for a long time.
As well as retaining customers you will save a lot of time and resources by following a well-renowned standard. The controls it has in place ensure that information that is being dealt with is secure and follows a process. Any other implementation of a similar concept may prove inefficient or inadequate which can lead to security incidents and data breaches. To deal with these costs’ money and a significant amount of time.
By following the ISO 27001 standard you can expect to reduce the chance of having a security incident which will result in financial savings.
Improve your reputation
The completion of ISO 27001 puts your organisation in a good place regarding reputation. As you have adequate controls in place you validate the ability of your organisation to adapt quickly to any changes or introductions of regulatory or legal requirements.
If your organisation didn’t take data security seriously or has no practical approach to information security, then you are likely to fail regulatory compliance and may be faced with the possibility of needing to pay a massive fine. This can quickly cause reputational damage to an organisation.
Strengthen trust within the organisation
By implementing ISO 27001 it will allow your organisation to create a more transparent organisational culture that focuses heavily on information security. This ensures that there is improved communication across all levels and local accountability within individual departments.
The certification will require various business functions bringing them together which increases awareness across the organisation around events, incidents, and things to be aware of.
This not only encourages staff to follow procedures but always gives them confidence in doing so. Staff will feel more comfortable raising issues as and when necessary.
These are just a few benefits of implementing and maintaining the ISO 27001 standard. It provides a robust process for your organisation to remain alert and compliant with the ever-changing threat landscape. Ultimately you will know, and your customers will know that their data is safe. Winning that trust is what will make your organisation flourish and to keep those customers you must ensure you adopt the fundamental principle of continuing to improve.
The certification has controls in place to ensure you evidence that you are reviewing and making changes to demonstrate that you are still worthy of having the standard.
How iSTORM can help
With the increase in high-profile cyber-attacks and associated data breaches, organisations need to understand what controls are required to protect the business and its information assets.
Here at iSTORM, we take a pragmatic and business-focused approach to ensure that we deliver the right frameworks for your organisation and budget.
We have a specialist information security team who will work with you to support your organisation’s current and future security needs.
With ISO 27001 we provide implementation, certification, and ongoing support.
We believe that if applied properly, effective security controls shouldn’t have a detrimental effect on the day-to-day running of your organisation. We ensure that the solutions we deliver work for the good of your business not against it and pride ourselves on achieving the right balance.
Find out more about our information security offerings here.
For more information about ISO 27001 click here.
