New to information security and ISO 27001?
Heard of an ‘ISMS’ or ‘information security management system’, but don’t know what it means or why you should implement one?
This blog post is for you.
What is an ISMS?
An ISMS (information security management system) provides a systematic approach for managing your information security.
This centrally managed framework enables you to manage, monitor, review and improve your information security practices in one place.
It contains policies, procedures and controls designed to meet the three objectives of information security, also known as the ‘CIA triad’:
- Confidentiality– making sure only authorised people and devices can access the data.
- Integrity– keeping data accurate and complete.
- Availability– making sure data can be accessed when you need it.
What is ISO 27001?
ISO 27001 is the international standard for information security management.
This information security standard sets out requirements for an effective ISMS. It also lists 93 information security controls in Annex A.
Organisations can also achieve independent, accredited certification to ISO 27001. But this isn’t a prerequisite for implementation.
Further reading: This blog post sets out nine steps for implementing ISO 27001.
Unsure why you should bother implementing an ISMS? Or not convinced this is a good business investment?
Let’s explore five benefits of ISO 27001 ISMS implementation.
1. Improve your data security and avoid breaches
For its 2025 Data Breach Investigations Report, Verizon analysed more than 22,052 security incidents, including 12,195 confirmed data breaches. The report noted a sharp rise in ransomware attacks, which was present in 44% of breaches.
This research reinforces how important it is for organisations to invest in security controls and resilience, particularly given the potential cost of a breach. According to IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025, the global average cost of a data breach is $4.44 million (about £3.28 million).
Cyber insecurity will always prove more expensive than cyber security – particularly as threat actors tend to focus on easy targets first. Obvious examples include organisations that don’t regularly patch, or train their staff to not click links in phishing emails.
An ISO 27001-compliant ISMS will help you:
- Mitigate those risks;
- Improve your information security practices; and
- Avoid costly information security breaches and cyber attacks.
2. ISO 27001 is a pragmatic choice
As our head of GRC and PCI DSS consultancy Andrew Pattison explained, ISO 27001 takes a risk-based approach.
“You could simply go through the organisation’s SoA [Statement of Applicability] and, based on risk, exclude controls not applicable to you. Or you can write your own controls, if needed, to properly address your risks.”
[…]
“However, auditors audit against the requirements of the Standard and your ISMS. As such, your control selection can be based on risk, so long as you can justify why you excluded any controls.”
So, if you’re going to invest in information and cyber security, ISO 27001 is a sound choice. This standard is far more flexible than many alternative frameworks.
Further reading: Andrew goes into more depth on pragmatic ISO 27001 risk assessments in this interview.
3. ISO 27001 is the framework for cyber defence in depth
Unfortunately, with the odds stacked in threat actors’ favour, security incidents are a matter of ‘when’, not ‘if’. No single measure or control is 100% foolproof.
On top of that, cyber attacks are multi-pronged. The idea that you can repulse them with a single line of defence is just unrealistic.
Millennia of human history teach that attackers will find their way through multiple lines of defence and that survival – or what we call ‘resilience’ in business and cyber terms – depends on having more lines of defence than an attacker can overcome.
Understanding the need for an intelligent, risk-based approach to cyber security drives the view that cyber defence in depth is the secret to survival.
ISO 27001 accounts for such a defence-in-depth approach very well in two key ways:
A. ISO 27001 accounts for all cyber resilience phases: identify, protect, detect, respond and recover.
In fact, its companion standard ISO 27002:2022 has tagged all 93 controls to help you identify into which phase each falls (the ‘cybersecurity concepts’ attribute value).
B. ISO 27001 covers three security ‘pillars’: people, processes and technology.
This further accounts for the “multi-pronged” nature of cyber attacks.
For example, you can stop phishing emails from reaching your employees’ inbox with a technological solution: email filters.
Where those filters fail, you depend on people to not fall for the attack. This means training your staff.
You also depend on people to follow your processes, and report phishing emails to IT. If nothing else, IT can investigate why the filters didn’t stop it, and whether they need adjusting.
4. Comply more easily with your legal and contractual requirements
ISO 27001 lies at the heart of every cyber security and data protection law across the world – not overtly, but covertly.
This is because the core objective of ISO 27001 is to preserve the CIA of valuable information. Virtually every cyber security and data privacy law is about at least one of those three things, and usually about all three.
Here are just a few examples:
- The GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and other privacy laws
- The PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard)
- The NIS Regulations (Network and Information Security Systems Regulations)
- DORA (the Digital Operational Resilience Act)
A part of any ISO 27001 ISMS implementation is that you identify relevant stakeholders and their requirements.
Stakeholders likely include customers, staff and partners, but also regulators. This makes it easier, when you implement your ISMS, to directly account for them.
5. Gain a competitive edge and win new business
Even if you’re happy with your level of security, clients and suppliers might not be as confident. Demonstrating to them that you have met the ISO 27001 requirements can ease their concerns and give you a competitive advantage.
ISO 27001 is the international standard for information security for a reason. Implementing it shows you’re following best practices.
And by also achieving certification against the Standard, you prove you’ve implemented it correctly.
It shows your security is sound.
Looking to implement ISO 27001 quickly and cost-effectively?
Get all the consultancy support you need to implement an ISMS with our ISO 27001 FastTrack™ service.
This turnkey consultancy package is designed to help organisations reach ISO 27001 certification readiness in 3–6 months for a fixed fee.
Put your ISO 27001 project in the hands of an experienced consultant.
We’ll develop an ISMS that works for you.
