You understand what information and assets your organisation needs to protect.
You’ve started thinking about the risks that could affect them.
So, what happens next?
This is where information security policies become important.
Policies help establish how information security should be managed across your organisation. But simply having a collection of documents doesn’t necessarily mean your business is better protected.
A policy only becomes valuable when it reflects how your organisation actually works and people understand what's expected of them.
More Than a Document in a Folder
For many organisations, policies are created and then forgotten. Effective information security policies should provide clear, practical guidance and remain relevant as your organisation grows and changes.
In fact, IASME's guidance emphasises that security documentation should be appropriate to the organisation and useful for managing information security. It also makes clear that not every policy necessarily needs to exist as a separate document, but policies do need to be successfully implemented across the business.
What Might Your Policies Need to Cover?
Different organisations need different policies depending on how they operate and the risks they face. These can cover areas such as access, incidents, data protection, employee responsibilities and security awareness.
Cyber Strategies' existing security policy offering covers areas including an Information Security Policy, Risk Register and Treatment Plan, Compliance Policy, Incident Management Policy, Business Continuity and Recovery Plan and System Management Policy.
But the important question isn't simply: “Do we have these documents?”
It's: “Do they actually work for our organisation?”
A Good Policy Should Have a Purpose
If an employee faced a security issue, would they know what was expected of them?
Clear policies help establish expectations around how information security should be approached across the organisation.
The aim isn’t paperwork for the sake of it. It’s about providing clear guidance that supports how your organisation manages and protects its information.
Your Policies Need to Grow with Your Business
Businesses change. People, technology and ways of working evolve, and the policies supporting them need to remain relevant too.
A one-size-fits-all approach may not reflect the way your organisation actually operates.
Cyber Strategies can help develop policies around your organisation and its needs, helping form part of a more structured approach to information security.
Where Does an ISMS Fit In?
Policies are only one part of information security. An ISMS brings your risks, policies and responsibilities together into a more structured approach, helping information security become part of how your organisation operates.
Cyber Strategies can help you develop an ISMS suited to your organisation, bringing these areas together without treating them as separate exercises.
Ask Yourself: Are Your Policies Actually Working?
You might already have information security policies.
But ask yourself:
When were they last reviewed?
Do they reflect how your organisation operates today?
Do your employees know they exist?
Do they understand what's expected of them?
Do your policies reflect the information security risks your organisation currently faces?
If you're unsure about the answers, simply having the documents may not be enough.
Make Your Policies Part of Your Business
Cyber Strategies has developed information security policies designed to be straightforward to understand and personalised to individual organisations, alongside assistance with creating and implementing them.
If you're unsure whether your current policies are appropriate, or you want to bring your policies, risks and security measures together within a practical ISMS, we can help.
Next week: Who Has Access to Your Business?
We'll look at why controlling access to your information and systems matters, and what can happen when access isn't properly managed.
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