Adopting a security standard is always beneficial for companies and international organisations working in and around Australia. One such standard is the renowned ISO 27001, which can be done quickly and easily, with more than enough benefits to make such a move worthwhile.

ISO 27001 is a standard for information security management and is a vital part of Australia’s cyber security industry, poised to grow significantly in the coming years. It is based on the five principles of information security, which are:

• Availability
• Confidentiality
• Integrity
• Accuracy and Completeness of Data 
• Accountability — who takes responsibility for what happens to the organisation’s assets and other responsibilities.

Why Do Organisations In Australia Adopt This Standard?

The standard is a good way of ensuring that organisations in Australia follow best practices in the management of information security risks. The standard helps organisations to reduce risks, control costs, and provide greater value to customers and employees by improving their ability to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from events that cause data breaches or other security incidents.

According to the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), “the rapid rise in cyber attacks is changing the threat landscape for businesses.” It also reported that “the global economic sanctions imposed on Russia are likely to have increased interest among Russian-affiliated groups in attacking Australian targets with cyber espionage or sabotage activities.”

The Benefits of Adopting This Standard:

The standard is an internationally recognised information security management system (ISMS) that provides a framework for organisations to manage their information security. It is based on the principle of risk management and focuses on identifying, assessing, and controlling risks to business operations.

The benefits of such a certification include the following:

• Demonstrating compliance with the standard by demonstrating how companies implement policies and procedures to protect the organisation’s assets. This can be useful in proving compliance with regulations or as part of the application process if they seek government funding.
• Having another toolkit available at all times when implementing new projects or changing existing systems. Some organisations find it helpful to use the same framework across multiple departments to share knowledge easily when necessary, reducing costs associated with training staff members who would otherwise only be familiar with one department’s approach (i.e., those working in finance).
• Adopting such a security standard can be done quickly and easily, with more than enough benefits to make such a move worthwhile. It is not a law or regulation but an internationally recognised set of standards developed by the International Standards Organisation (ISO). As such, it is a voluntary standard for adoption by any organisation in any industry.

Adopting any security standard—whether ISO 27001 or another—shows the customers and partners that companies are serious about security. It also helps organisations identify and fix problems before they become big issues in the company’s infrastructure.

With so many benefits available when adopting such a security standard, Australian Companies that don’t use it are surely missing out. It can help protect the business from cyber security threats, it helps minimise the risk of data breaches and other problems, and it allows businesses to show customers that they take their data seriously. It’s also an important part of doing business in today’s world, where information is becoming increasingly valuable—and more vulnerable.