Information security is one of the main concerns of modern organizations. The volume and value of the data used in daily business transactions, inform more and more about the way organizations operate and how successful they are. In order for this information to be protected -and to appear protected- more and more companies chose ISO 27001 for their certification.
The main security factors are undeniably globalization, government directives, regulatory requirements, terrorism and escalating cyberspace threats. In addition, organizations seeking to formulate contracts with governments or large corporate clients are realizing that ISO 27001 is now a prerequisite for any business activity.
Certification is viewed as a strong reassurance of your commitment to fulfill your obligations towards your clients and business partners. This situation is made even more urgent with the advent of the EU General Data Protection Regulation(GDPR) which requires companies to secure all EU residents personal data and demands that heavy fines (up to 4% of the annual global report or 20 million euros depending on which sum is greater) might result from serious data breaches.
Despite the fact that GDPR does not offer specific instructions concerning data protection security, ISO 27001 offers a specification set that demonstrates the characteristics of an effective information security management system (ISMS).
The growing interest about the ISO 27001 certification derives from the two following factors: the data threat augmentation (“cyber space threats”) and the ever-increasing range of regulatory and legal requirements related to information protection. The information security threats have a national character and they indiscriminately aim at every organization and person that (primarily) uses or possesses digital information. These threats are freely and automatically found online.
Data is also exposed to many other threats such as natural disasters, external attacks, internal corruption and theft. Over the last 20 years, an accretive legislation and regulation body concerning data and information security has emerged. Certain of such regulations focus on isolated data protection when others aim at financial and operating company systems as well as risk management systems. An official information security management system, that offers guidance for the development of optimal practices, is considered to be more and more important when it comes to compliance and organization (and government) certification is increasingly required before participating in important commercial transactions.
Obtaining a certification is a valuable and visible proof of your organization’s willingness to meet internationally accepted data security standards. Attaining this international standard is not just marketing: except from GDPR compliance and other relevant laws, such as those in line with the Network and Information Systems (NIS directive), the ability to prove that your organization complies with ISO 27001 can create business opportunities around the world.
