You'll likely have been bombarded by acronyms, confusing documentation, and mind-numbing jargon during your time as a business leader within your industry. These things may be frustrating at times, but there is usually a good reason behind them.
One in particular that has been a popular cause for concern, especially for clients searching for businesses to work with, is the ISO 27001 certification. This may not mean much to the average person, but you will likely have heard of this in some capacity while running your business. But what is ISO 27001, and why is it so important?
What Is ISO 27001?
To use its full name, ISO 27001:20122, as it was recently revised in 2022, is an international security standard for businesses. It dictates the best ways to safely manage their data, minimising security risks and helping them create their own Information Security Management System or ISMS. ISO 27001 was created by the International Organization for Standardisation, yet ISO is taken from the Greek word isos meaning equal and is not actually an abbreviation. The IEC or International Electrotechnical Commission also had a hand in the creation of ISO 27001 too and was first released worldwide back in 2005.
How Do Businesses Get ISO 27001 Certification?
Attaining ISO 27001 certification for your business is no simple task and requires a significant amount of time and effort to do so. This is why many companies use tremendous resources to outsource the job to experts, as wading through each step can be tedious if you don't understand what you're doing. You'll need to spend significant time preparing your business, as well as laying out plans and establishing the scope and objectives of your ISMS before going forward.
Risk assessments, and the controls you'd need to put into place, are also essential in creating your framework, and you'll also need to train your employees to utilise good data security habits. Eventually, you'll get to a stage where an auditor will assess all of your documentation and planning, suggest changes where necessary, and then the certification process can begin, which could take up to a year to complete.
How To Do Your Own ISO 27001
While it is highly recommended to get an expert to handle this certification process, it is still possible to do it on your own, internally. Doing it alone can save you a significant amount of money, but there's a reason experts charge a substantial amount for this. Even for them, it's a lengthy process and takes a lot of time to complete to the required standard. If you feel as though you and your team can manage this lengthy process with great attention to detail and rigorous care, then you must take on each step mindfully. This will help to ensure that everything is done correctly.
There are plenty of guides and advice pages you can find online to help you tackle the ISO 27001 certification. If you are going to be doing it alone, we highly recommend utilising an ISO 27001 template such as those offered here from High Table: https://hightable.io/product/iso-27001-templates-toolkit/
A Deep Dive Of ISO 27001
The complexity of ISO 27001 can be incredibly off-putting, but it is incredibly beneficial to have this certification. It can provide you and your team with the knowledge to take better care of your business in terms of security. Not only does it allow your employees to develop better security habits, but it also shows your clients and business partners that you have a strict dedication to data security as well as knowledge and ability to deal with any security issues that appear. Two major areas of the ISO 27001 certification take precedence over all else: your security risk assessment and the controls you will put in place to handle those risks.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that business leaders do not wake up thinking, ah – I need ISO 27001. But a time will come when your clients ask you for it. At least now you are prepared.
Author: Stuart Barker | Director at High Table the ISO 27001 Company: https://hightable.io