Why choose Target Defense for your ISO 27001 compliance
Get ISO certified
Our fully managed process helps you achieve ISO 27001 compliance certification with a 100% success rate.
Qualified experts
All our services are delivered by certified ISO 27001 compliance audit consultants with years of experience.
Detailed reporting
Get a comprehensive report of compliance to clauses 4-10 and the Annex A requirement.
Flexible delivery
We‘ll work around your schedule to minimise disruption to your everyday business activities.
What are ISO 27001 compliance consultancy services?
ISO consultancy services help your organization achieve and maintain compliance with ISO standards. These services guide you through setting up, implementing, and improving management systems that meet international standards.
By performing gap analyses, creating necessary policies, and offering ongoing support, ISO consultants make sure your practices align with best practices and regulatory requirements. These services show your commitment to high standards, boost your reputation, and help you meet legal obligations like UK GDPR, EU GDPR, FCA, and PCI DSS, keeping your organization compliant and secure.
How difficult is it to achieve ISO 27001 compliance?
Obtaining ISO 27001 certification is a challenging process that demands a strong commitment from your organization, potentially taking up to a year to become certified. You need to set up, implement, and maintain an Information Security Management System (ISMS) that meets detailed requirements, conduct thorough risk assessments, create and document policies, and ensure everyone is trained in information security practices.
Regular internal audits and management reviews are also necessary to keep improving and staying compliant. While it is tough, getting ISO 27001 certification shows your dedication to information security and can give you a competitive edge. With the right resources and commitment, you can successfully navigate this process and achieve certification.
How Target Defense can help you achieve ISO 27001 compliance certification
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Target Defense’s expertise and technical understanding were immediately apparent. This gave us confidence that we were going to get a good service and a good outcome. We were right on both counts.
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We’ve always been very impressed with the cyber security services Target Defense provide us. Their professional approach, knowledge and flexibility have ensured they have become a key trusted partner in our supply chain.
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ISO 27001 Frequently asked questions (FAQ’s)
What is ISO 27001 certification?
ISO 27001 certification, or ISO/IEC 27001:2013, is an internationally recognised information security management standard of best practices.
ISO 27001 covers a number of policies and procedures to review legal, physical and technical controls to determine the extent who which these meet the 10 clauses and 114 generic security controls grouped into 14 sections (called “Annex A”).
ISO 27001 clauses 4 – 10:
- Context of the Organisation (Clause 4)
- Leadership (Clause 5)
- Planning (Clause 6)
- Support (Clause 7)
- Operations (Clause 8)
- Performance evaluation (Clause 9)
- Improvements (Clause 10)
This will cover the following 14 controls:
- Information security policies
- Organisation of information security
- Human resource security
- Asset management
- Access control
- Cryptography
- Physical and environmental security
- Operations security
- Communications security
- System acquisition, development and maintenance
- Supplier relationships
- Information security incident management
- Information security aspects of business continuity
- Compliance
Being ISO 27001 certified demonstrates a commitment to maintaining top levels of security.
How much does ISO 27001 certification cost?
The cost of ISO 27001 certification depends on the size and nature of your business, as well as the gap between your current status and the desired, compliant state. By undertaking a gap analysis first, this journey can be accurately mapped, saving valuable time and money when it comes to implementation.
What is the ISO/IEC 27000-series standard?
ISO 27000 series is a family of information security management standards and documents covering all areas of the ISO standard for information management security. ISO 27001 is specifically the certification standard whereas ISO 27002 (and beyond) are controls, guidance and information documents, for the ISO 27001 certification standard.
What are the difference between ISO 27001 & Cyber Essentials Standards?
| ISO 27001 | Cyber Essentials | |
|---|---|---|
| What is it | An international standard that sets out the requirements of an Information Security Management System to manage information security risk in a systematic way. The standard isn’t mandatory however many contracts/tenders do stipulate it as a requirement. | An NCSC backed UK assurance scheme addressing five technical security controls to help businesses address the most common vulnerabilities. Cyber Essentials is mandatory for government contracts. |
| Risk | ISO 27001 adopts a risk-based approach where organisations set their risk acceptance criteria and risk methodology. This determines how risks are addressed. | Cyber Essentials aims to address the most common vulnerabilities found in organisations. It is not a risk-based approach |
| Recognition | ISO 27001 is an international standard recognised around the world | Cyber Essentials is a UK based scheme and is not well known worldwide |
| Time to implement | Months | Days – weeks |
| Certification process | Certification is provided by a Certification Body. This involves a Stage 1 and Stage 2 audit, and annual surveillance audits. Certification lasts for 3 years, as long as the organisation passes the audits. | Complete a self-assessment questionnaire (or undergo vulnerability scans and a workstation assessment if taking Cyber Essentials Plus) and be assessed by a IASME Cyber Essentials Assessor. Certification must be repeated annually. |
| Costs | Med/High | Low |
| Scope | Scope is defined by the organisation but the standard encompasses the business and is not just focused on IT. | Focuses on 5 key areas (shown below) and is more IT focused.
|
| Applicability | Aimed at all businesses. | Aimed at all businesses, but particularly targets smaller businesses that may have not previously considered cybersecurity. |
What are the business benefits of ISO 27001?
According to IBM’s Security Report, the global average total cost of a data breach in 2020 was £2.69 million. With cyber and information security making headlines every day, and hackers targeting business of all sizes, being ISO 27001 compliant is crucial.
It also enhances your global reputation, helps you to avoid the financial (and reputational) penalties of a data breach and will also reduce the number of audits you’ll have to undergo.
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Protects you from cyber attacks
Reduces the likelihood of security incidents.
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Reduces breaches & incidents risks
Reduces the risks of fines/penalties/reputational damage resulting from breaches and incidents.
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Drives new business
Worldwide recognised standard which can help drive new business opportunities and provide competitive advantage.
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Cost-effective
Can reduce costs through standardising processes and procedures, reduced cyber insurance costs and fines.
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Enriches your security culture
Improves knowledge of information security across the business and helps build a security culture.
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Refines your processes
Provides a framework for ensuring contractual, commercial and regulatory requirements of the business are met.
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Improves your security posture
Improves the business response to incidents.
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Gain a competitive advantage
Can help to simplify due diligence queries from customers, reduce the need for customer audits and speed up tender process.
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Reinforces your reputation
Increases trust and assurance with customers, partners and the supply chain.
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Spend smarter
Ensures that budgets for information are spent according to the risks to the business rather than based on what’s the latest and greatest.
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Protects your data
Supports the protection of personal data and compliance with GDPR requirements.
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Drives business growth
Provides a structure to help organisations scale for growth.
What’s an ISMS?
ISMS stands for Information Security Management System, and is the core component of ISO 27001. It’s the framework that outlines all security risks and your controls for them. It covers people, processes and technology and typically encompasses your entire organisation, securing your corporate information assets confidentiality, integrity and availability (CIA).
What’s the difference between ISO 9001 and ISO 27001?
SO 9001 is a standard for ensuring the quality of your services and is based on a QMS (Quality Management System), whereas ISO 27001 sets the standard for information security and uses an ISMS (Information Security Management System). There’s actually some overlap between the two standards, so gaining ISO 27001 compliance will give you a head start on ISO 9001, and vice versa.
What’s the difference between certification and accreditation?
When it comes to ISO 27001, the words certification and accreditation are often used interchangeably by companies who don’t know better. However, there is a difference. For ISO 27001 in the UK, a certification body tests organisations against the ISO 27001 standard, and gives them a registered certificate if they pass. The accreditation body on the other hand, is responsible for ensuring that the certification bodies all work to the same standard.
In the UK the accreditation body is UKAS and they’re recognised by the Government. So to sum up, end user companies are certified as ISO 27001 compliance by a certification body, who are in turn accredited by the accreditation body (UKAS).
