This 2017 version refers to the British version of ISO 27001 (the BS EN ISO/IEC 27001:2017), which does not include any change that impacts requirements defined by the ISO 27001:2013.
Considering that, Conformio set of documents is also compliant with this British version of ISO 27001.
First lets understand the differences between these documents. Normally policies define general guidelines (what must be done), while procedures are more specific (defining how to perform an activity), but it is not mandatory that your documentation is divided in such way.
Considering that, if your "policy" fulfills requirements from Annex A control A.9.4.2 this is compliant with ISO 27001 and will be acceptable for certification audit.
First of all, implementing a certification in multiple geographic locations is a complex task and you should go for it only if it is really necessary for business strategies and objectives. Instead you should consider the prioritization of locations and implementing the certification one location at a time.
Regarding project steps to become certified, they are practically the same for single and multiple locations. Broadly speaking, to implement ISO 27001 an organization has to:
- Obtain top management support
- Define and document a scope based on the needs and expectations of interested parties relevant to information security. At this point, for a multiple location project, you have to identify common needs and handle conflicting issues regarding the multiple locations (e.g. conflicting laws and regulations).
- Define, document and communicate an information security policy and responsibi lities relevant to operation and management of information security. For a multiple location project you should consider an organization wide-policy defining common requirements and defining that local issues are to be considered for specific topics (e.g., common issue may be top management commitment to ISMS, and a specific issue are the definition of security objectives for each location.
- Define a risk assessment and treatment methodology
- Define and allocate competencies and resources for the operation and management of information security
- Implement risk assessment and risk treatment
- Operate the security controls and generate the necessary records. This another point where implementation can differ according the location
- Measure, monitor and evaluate the information security performance
- Implement corrections and improvements
Regarding support required, to increase chances of success, it is important that persons involved have experience in project management and knowledge of the standard, and that you consider hiring expert legal advise to map legal requirements and handle conflicting issues.
A last, but not least, the point is that you have to consider a certification body that can cover all locations you wish to include in your certification.
Answer:
Although ISO 9001:2015 does not require a documented context of the organization when working with organizations, help them develop a document, a report for example, that acts as an input to the management review. Organizations should determine the context and use it to inform decision making. That way, we also ensure that for the next management review the context information is updated.
Also, I’m looking at Conformio, but also need to attach incident, risks, action, etc. Our organization (an agency for UN) is not really big, so budget is a constraint. I would prefer not to go with Eramba (bad experience). Would you have plan for Conformio to add more features ? Or could you suggest a system / platform that can be helpful for us ?
In the second half of 2019 we plan to launch a new version of Conformio which will have a Risk register that will relate assets, threats, vulnerabilities, impact, likelihood, controls, and activities to implement them.
ISO 27001 and ISO 22301 communication plan
Answer:
ISO 27001 nor ISO 22301 do not require the communication plan to be documented, these standards only specify the activities you must do.
Considering that, depending on the size of the organization and its security objectives, a Communication Plan could be more or less formal, fully documented as a separate document or simply stated in a few sentences within other policies, procedures and plans (our toolkits adopt this second approach).
For example, in the Information Security Policy it is communicated the security organization and the key roles and responsibilities. In the Awareness plan, the general and specific requirements to respond to incidents can be communicated. In the Incident management procedure it is specified who needs to communicate with whom, as well as in the Business continuity plan.
Answer: If you are an organization operating inside EU, and your scope is the whole organization, then indeed you will not be able to exclude GDPR (as you said, at least the personal data from your employees will have to be protected considering Article 32).
As for an example where you can exclude GDPR of your ISMS list of requirements, even if you operate inside EU, I can mention a scope limited to Research and Development process/department, provided that it does not use EU citizens personal data on test databases.
Risk Management and BCM
Answer:
There is no definitive organizational structure for a BCM, so here are some examples:
- For micro and small businesses, the BCM may consist of only one person, accumulating this role with other business functions.
- For mid-size businesses, the BCM may consist of a person dedicated to this function plus a small team for operational activities.
- For large business, the BCM may consist of a business manager or coordinator with teams dedicated to specific business processes (e.g., IT, physical infrastructure, logistic, etc.)
The common point is that all these structures are subordinated to Top Management, either to the CEO himself or to a Senior Manager.
Regarding the role of the Risk Management team on BCM, this team works to id entify and prioritize the most relevant risks that can lead to business disruption and work with related interested parties to identify, implement and periodically evaluate the effectiveness of controls and continuity plans. Their role is more on prevention, performance evaluation and continual improvement, than on handling the disruptive event when it happens.
Thank you so much for your response it was really helpfull
Certification ISO 27001
Answer:
ISO 27000 and ISO 27002 aren't certifiable standards, they are support standards to implement ISO 27001, so you only need to fulfill requirements of ISO 27001 to certify an ISMS.