In today’s business world, a robust IT compliance policy is a necessity. It is because most organisations now depend on digitised services. Companies operating online stores rely on e-commerce websites to do business by taking orders, receiving payments, and engaging with customers. Even brick-and-mortar businesses utilise software to perform various activities, such as order management, customer management, back-office accounting, and inventory management.
In a world where technology can be a boon or a bane, a lack of proper security measures can jeopardise any business. IT systems and technologies can get abused and may impede growth. To avoid this, a strong IT compliance policy needs to be put in place to monitor and maintain control over the use of network, software, and hardware. In conclusion, the IT compliance policy sets out the rules and regulations for their IT practices. Below are key considerations when developing your own IT compliance policy.
7 Key Areas in IT Compliance Policies
#1 Technology, People & Processes
IT compliance is not all about the tech. The focus should be on three major aspects: technology, people, and processes. Many organisations focus heavily on tech, resulting in failed audits. Taking the correct approach and having a comprehensive view of IT compliance is the key to a robust IT compliance policy that complies with the necessary standards.
#2 Relevant Laws & Regulations
Check for local laws and regulations that stipulate the policies that govern IT compliance requirements. Among some common ones:
- The Sarbanes-Oxley Act – regulating financial reporting
- The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act – regulating non-public personal information and financial data
- The Health Insurance and Accountability ACT – governing health information handled by healthcare organisations
Once you have identified the law and regulations applicable to your organisation, then you can ascertain the controls that apply to these laws and regulations. Here are the various industry and government standards that specify them, including:
- Control Objectives for Information and Related IT
- National Institute of Standards and Technology
- Payment Card Industry Data
All these controls can have a significant impact on your business, so make sure you familiarise yourself with the relevant controls.
#3 Raising Awareness on the Importance of IT Compliance Policy
One of the biggest threats to data security is the internal employees. Employees’ actions can have a massive impact on cybersecurity. Improper or illegal software upload, download, sharing, and storing can jeopardise the entire organisation. Without proper training, employees can be the weakest link in any organisation’s effort in preventing cybersecurity threats.
The reality is many employees choose insecure data transfer methods due to their convenience. Among tools used for data transfer and sharing include personal email accounts, consumer-grade collaboration apps, peer-to-peer sharing platforms, and instant messaging. These are usually targeted by cybercriminals to infiltrate organisations.
To mitigate this, start by raising awareness among your employees. Conduct training on understanding the origin of various threats and how daily actions can give rise to vulnerabilities. Invest in proper education to demonstrate the significance of IT compliance. All these will increase the entire organisation’s willingness to adopt cybersecurity best practices.
Here are some key topics to include in your training plan:
- How insecure file transfer methods exposes your company to risks
- What phishing scams are and how to avoid being a victim
- Why social engineering is the weakest link in any organisation
- What are the precautionary steps to exercise before using or downloading unsanctioned applications
- The importance of using and creating strong passwords, and tips on how to create a strong password
#4 Align Your IT Policy with the Company's Security Policies
Align your IT policies with your business operations and the culture of your organisation. Businesses get higher compliance when your environment can revolve around processes or ad-hoc ways of doing things. Conversely, when your IT policies are rigid, you will require detective and preventive controls which may defeat the purpose of having those policies in the first place.
#5 Understanding the IT Environment
A deep understanding of your existing IT environments is crucial in designing your IT policy compliance. There are two types of IT environments:
- Homogeneous environments – Consist of standardised vendors, configurations, and models.
- Heterogeneous environments – Utilise a wide variety of security and compliance applications by different vendors
The compliance cost is lower in homogeneous environments as there are fewer vendors and technology add-ons. However, with trends and business environment constantly evolving, most businesses fall in a heterogeneous environment which is more complex. Regardless, your security policies need to tackle recent technologies and challenges, including virtualisation and cloud computing.
#6 Establishing Accountability
Define organisational responsibilities and roles to establish accountability for each asset and process. Having accountability also establishes the right person required to make decisions when needed.
Accountability starts at the top and flows throughout the organization. It is the responsibility of the board of directors to ensure that full involvement is cultivated, and the best way to do so is by framing IT policies in terms of risks.
Your IT vendors play two important roles:
- Data/system owners – The responsibility includes ownership for data usage and care. On top of that, they are also accountable for protecting and managing information.
- Data/system custodians – Custodial roles include several duties involving systems and applications such as system administration, security analysis, legal counseling, and internal audit.
These responsibilities are crucial and important for IT policy compliance. Auditors need to carefully verify compliance activity execution to ensure that the implementation is going according to plan.
#7 Automation of the Compliance Process
As the company grows, the IT infrastructure, software, and hardware continually evolve and grow. Automation ensures the regular system and compliance evaluation without heavily relying on internal auditors.
Kick Start Your Business IT Compliance
Setting up a well-designed future-proofed IT compliance may be a long and tedious process. It is important for any business as it keeps your reputation intact, minimises risk, and avoids potential penalties and fines associated with security negligence.
Get a head start on your IT compliance initiatives by speaking to us. With over 20 years of experience, we have the right expertise and experience to help you in all your IT compliance challenges. Contact us today for a no-obligation chat.
