The shrinking of borders facilitated by globalization has allowed companies to take their products and processes to different countries, deepening global trade. This scenario has brought a series of benefits to development, but also great challenges.
Among these challenges was the need to ensure that organizations from different regions of the globe were able to guarantee quality and the use of good practices. In response to this need, certification programs were developed with the aim of standardizing certain actions.
The International Organization for Standardization, known as ISO, is the certifying institution with the highest credibility in the world, with widely recognized certifications such as ISO 9001, focused on quality management, and ISO 14001, focused on environmental management.
In addition to these, however, ISO has a wide variety of programs that, when applied, allow companies to be more effective, competitive, and secure. This is the case of ISO 27000, which establishes standards and practices for the implementation of an Information Security Management System.
ISO 27000: The ISO for Information Security
Information is power. This is a truth valid since the dawn of humanity and that has proven itself many times throughout history. It is no wonder that the control of information has always been a strategic aspect for dominant groups.
Today we have the ability to produce, store, and analyze information like never before. In a simple few minutes of browsing the internet, you probably consume more information than individuals in the 18th century had throughout their entire lives.
For companies, this reality has been used to improve processes, allowing for more assertive and precise decision-making. So much so that data has been elevated to the same importance as oil in public statements by some of the world’s top executives.
But if digital tools of information technology have exponentially expanded our ability to create, store, and analyze data, they have also brought new dangers and risks to information.
Cybercrimes are a reality that we all need to face, being a risk of great losses, whether financial or even to our well-being and health. For companies, it is no different, with the addition that they have a much larger volume of sensitive information compared to an individual.
ISO 27000 was developed with a focus on information security as a whole. With the digitalization of the world, however, its branches, ISO 27001 and ISO 27002, which deal with the security of digital data and electronic storage systems, have gained greater prominence.
What is ISO 27001?
We live in a time where the security and use of personal data are gaining more and more attention, in the wake of scandals involving technology giants like Facebook and Google and a greater understanding of how this new reality of the information age is affecting the world.
However, ISO 27001 emerges at a much earlier moment in this process, when digital solutions were still gaining ground in much of the world, including Brazil.
The objective of the standard at the time, as it is today, is to create a standardized model that allows for establishing, implementing, operating, monitoring, maintaining, and improving the systems and processes aimed at the security of a company’s information. In other words, to allow organizations to have an information security management system.
It is important to emphasize that no company is obliged to have the certification, and its application is optional.
What is the Purpose of ISO 27001?
Even today, it is common to find people who question why they should seek certifications in companies, and with ISO 27001 it is no different. Behind these questions usually lies misinformation about the benefits that these can generate.
When we talk specifically about ISO 27001, we can highlight:
- Implementation of an information security management system, leading to the adoption of good practices and continuous improvement that allow maintaining the integrity of systems and sensitive data of your company and customers.
- Allowing to operate with greater security and predictability, thus facilitating the search for innovation and the growth of the organization as a whole.
- Having an official proof that the company follows the highest standards of the information security sector, generating greater reliability for the brand and thus opening the door to partners and markets.
Having information security as a strategic element in an increasingly connected world where data plays an essential role in the development of processes, products, and services.
If you were wondering what the purpose of ISO 27001 is, now you know that with the certification your company becomes more secure and gains an important competitive advantage.
ISO 27001 and the General Data Protection Law (LGPD)
At this point, you may be thinking about how to obtain the certification and achieve all these benefits, but first, we need to make an addendum.
In 2018, the General Data Protection Law (LGPD) was sanctioned in Brazil, establishing the legal criteria for the use, treatment, and storage of information by companies. The LGPD is an important advancement for individual rights in the country as well as providing legal security for the market that increasingly works with and uses data.
The implementation of the LGPD requirements – which apply to companies of all sizes and activities that provide services in Brazil and collect and process data from people located in the country – does not lead to the achievement of ISO 27001.
However, companies that have ISO 27001 are better prepared to comply with the legislation, as they already have good practices that facilitate meeting the technical requirements to reduce the risks of data integrity violation.
Therefore, this is a great time to obtain the certification, taking advantage of the fact that your efforts will be focused on your data.
How to Obtain ISO 27001?
For a company to obtain an ISO certification, it must prove compliance with the standards established by the standard in an audit. But this is just the final part of the process.
If you want to reach this stage, you need to go through five stages:
Scenario Analysis:
Do you know all the software your company has? What data does it collect and how are they processed? What are the information security policies already applied? These are some questions that must be answered to understand the current context of information security in your company.
It is from this information that you will be able to understand what works and what does not, as well as what needs to be done.
Risk Assessment:
After understanding the scenario, it is necessary to evaluate the internal processes and understand the risks related to information security. The identified risks are then categorized according to their degree of threat.
Implementation of Operational Controls:
With the risks identified, it is time to establish the operational controls that will allow controlling, eliminating, or mitigating them.
Efficacy Analysis:
At this moment, the performance of the implemented operational controls aimed at information security is analyzed. This is the stage where the internal audit for certification takes place.
Continuous Improvement:
All processes related to information security must be constantly evaluated, risks need to be monitored, and it is necessary to be open to the possibility of creating new operational controls, allowing for continuous improvement. More than providing a certificate of good practices, ISO 27001 should transform your company and lead to effective management of information security.
The time for the application of all these stages and obtaining ISO depends always on the company’s dedication to the project, its size, and the quality of the workforce involved, and having the guidance of specialized consultancy is always a great alternative.
The guidance of consultants contributes to greater assertiveness in carrying out the work aimed at achieving the information security certification, minimizing the risks of errors and rework, which, in addition to time, often require financial resources.
Continue following our blog and learn more about information security and digital threats!
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