Information security and ISO27001 is a topic that creates much interest among the business owners. With the digital transformation, this issue has become a priority at the C-Levels meeting tables. In this article, we will explain in detail why this subject is so relevant to the companies that want to remain competitive in the market.
Data/information is the “new oil”
Not just companies perceived information as a valuable asset. The growing number of cyber attacks demonstrates the interest of criminals in this type of crime. With this, we see that threats exist and are increasingly sophisticated. Therefore, companies need to look for ways to mitigate as much as possible the risk of becoming the next victim of these criminals. Moreover, it is what ISO 27001 is all about, recognized as the most precious asset.
Protect information from whom, or what
Imagine that you have organized the data to extract essential information to determine the development of a new product, which will be the company’s new flagship. The company has already invested a fortune. What measures would you take to prevent the leak of the critical information to a competitor? Can you imagine a tiny loophole can compromise your brand’s performance? Having a cloud-based tool for data security is vital for the companies. Critical information should only be restricted to those involved in the project.
You must not ignore the integrity and availability
Now imagine that this same information was extracted from an invalid database, causing strategic decisions not to be aligned with the real need of the market, either because the data was not updated, or because it was incorrectly manipulated in an unintentional way. In this case, we are talking about integrity, which is the second pillar of information security. In other words, decisions were made based on unhealthy information. Suppose the company was not even able to launch the product before the competitor, because a key person with crucial knowledge and information in the company discontinued. It causes the company to take time to reorganize the information and continue the project. We are talking about availability, the third pillar of information security.
What does it mean?
With these practical approaches, it is easier to understand that ensuring the security of information is crucial. We need to protect it from unauthorized leaks and disclosures, so that it always remains intact, so that the information can be trusted and available when needed. You can define information security as methodologies and practices aimed at protecting information and information systems, aiming at all these pillars, confidentiality, integrity and availability.
Difference between Information Security and IT-Security
When it comes to information security, it is still common to associate the subject with the IT universe. Company information may be available in other than digital media. For different situations, different controls need to be applied. As the information is in different formats and available in different ways, vulnerability analyzes are necessary according to the reality of each company so that it is possible to identify which assets the organization needs or wants to protect and the controls necessary for this purpose.