Whether you’re a major corporation looking to mitigate the hefty fines associated with data breaches or a small business just starting out, you need to be ISO 27001 compliant. An outside consultant can help you meet this standard and avoid costly penalties.
Here are some essential ways that an ISO 27001 consultant can aid your business:
Implementation
Getting ISO 27001 certified is a big deal, and it helps you secure access to clients who would be hesitant to work with your business without it. It also shows that your customers can trust your information, which improves both reputation and resilience.
The standard requires a ton of documentation in the form of policies, procedures and risk assessments, among other things. An ISO 27001 consultant can help you develop these documents and ensure they’re audit-ready. They can also help you develop a risk treatment plan document, which is intensely reviewed during your certification assessment.
Auditing
Whether you’re a big business that deals with confidential information, financial data and intellectual property or you’re a one-man band trying to win a tender from a major client, your clients and stakeholders want to know their information is secure. An ISO 27001 consultant can help you ensure your ISMS is operative, documented correctly and that your risk areas are addressed.
Besides ensuring your organisation’s compliance, ISO 27001 consultants can also speed up the process of becoming ISO 27001 certified by catching things that internal staff might miss. They can also audit your organisation’s ISMS for your certification audit, ensuring everything is in place and ready to go.
Training
Besides helping you to build an ISMS, your ISO 27001 consultant should also provide training to your employees on the standard’s requirements. This will not only improve your employees’ security awareness but also help them to understand how their work relates to security.
An external audit is the final step before you achieve ISO 27001 certification. The auditor will review your organisation’s ISMS and verify that it complies with the standard. The consultant will help you prepare for this audit by performing internal audits and assisting with your risk assessments.
Vendor Risk Assessments
Whether you’re working for a big enterprise that deals with confidential data, financial information or intellectual property or a one-man band hoping to win a meaty tender, clients and stakeholders need to feel safe that their information is protected. ISO 27001 certification is a big step towards this.
This includes assessing and monitoring vendor risk assessments on an ongoing basis. It also involves ensuring that vendors meet internal policies, quality assurance standards, and data protection protocols.
You’ll need to decide how to score risks and assign values to them. Will you rank them on a numerical scale or use a colour code? Will you prioritise certain risks more than others? For example, a hospital may prioritise data privacy while a restaurant might value vendors with low operational risk. Alternatively, you can automate the assessment process with a compliance platform.