How to Pass an ISO® 27001 Audit — A Comprehensive Guide

What is an ISO® 27001 Audit?

An ISO® 27001 audit is where a professional assesses your ISMS to see whether it meets ISO® 27001 guidelines. If you pass an initial audit, you achieve the ISO® 27001 certification. 

Maintaining this certification requires annual surveillance audits to ensure you continue maintaining ISO® 27001 compliance. You’ll also need to renew your certification every three years by passing another ISO® 27001 audit.

Companies are advised to conduct internal audits outside the certification to test their readiness for the official audit. It’s also a great way to regularly review the effectiveness of your ISMS in case certain areas need improving.

Why is an ISO® 27001 Audit Important?

Prerequisite to ISO® 27001 Certification

ISO® 27001 audits are a necessary step towards achieving certification. Passing the audit will prove your ISMS complies with the ISO® 27001 standard and help you get certified.

While information security management systems don’t need to have this certification, it’s an internationally-recognized standard that is respected by many businesses. If you’re certified, your company will appear more credible and trustworthy to clients or partners.

Ensure a Well-Maintained ISMS & Easily Identify Vulnerabilities

Performing regular ISO® 27001 audits allows you to consistently improve your information security procedures and better mitigate vulnerabilities. During audits, you’re able to identify weak areas in your ISMS before a major incident occurs.

You can then take proactive measures and come up with ways to strengthen these weaknesses to decrease the risk of security breaches (just make sure to notify the relevant parties when changing security procedures). It’s also beneficial to design risk treatment plans for whenever you encounter certain issues to speed up the recovery process.

Improved Risk Management and Ensures Regulatory Compliance

ISO® 27001 audits help you consistently meet compliance regulations. If you’re reviewing your ISMS regularly, you’ll be able to notice when certain requirements aren’t being met early on. This prevents you from decreasing the quality of your security and reduces the likelihood of security incidents occurring.

Types of ISO® 27001 Audits

Internal Audit

An internal audit is where you assess your ISMS against ISO® 27001 requirements. You can assign this task to a team of in-house employees or hire an auditor from outside the company.

Internal audits are supposed to discover gaps and vulnerabilities in your security system to help you prepare for an external audit. After discovering those gaps, you can work on fixing them before taking the certification.

External Audit

External audits also involve someone evaluating your ISMS to check for ISO® 27001 compliance. However, external audits, once passed, lead to official certification (or renewal if you’ve already achieved the certification). According to ISO® 27001 regulations, you should conduct internal audits before performing an external one.

Who Conducts an ISO® 27001 Audit?

ISO® 27001 audits are performed by professional auditors. They must know the ISO® 27001 standard and the auditing process. Official auditors are required to pass the ISO® 27001 Lead Auditor course or an equivalent qualification, have at least 200 hours of auditing experience, and 2 years of work experience (with min. 1 year in information security).

Many certification bodies conduct ISO® 27001 audits, which all vary in price. You can search for them on sites like ANAB CB Directory (for USA) or DAkkS Database (Germany).

How to Pass an ISO® 27001 Audit

Invest in an ISMS Consultancy Company to Kickstart Your Audit Program

If you’re unsure about the auditing process and wish to seek professional guidance, invest in services like ISMS Connect to get unlimited access to expert ISO® 27001 consultants via Slack or video meetings. We also provide in-depth guides and documents on ISO® 27001 implementation to help you prepare for the official audit.

Contact your consultant whenever you need advice about satisfying ISO® 27001 requirements or if you have questions about the certification, including:

• TImelines

• Costs

• Finding auditors

They also help you undergo preparation for the audit, which includes implementing requirements, writing up compliant policies, performing risk assessments, and much more.

Things to Look Out for in an ISO® 27001 Audit Consultant

When deciding which consultant to hire for your ISO® 27001 audit, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, you should understand that their role is not limited to advice — a lot of their responsibilities revolve around directly helping you build your ISMS and performing assessments.

Second, you should pay attention to their pricing model to see whether there are any guarantees your project will reach completion. If you’re unsure about their services, contact them for more information. If we’re looking at ISMS Connect, for example, there’s a message form or email you can use to send in your query.

It’s also important to view details about their expertise or experience to determine how qualified they are in terms of ISO® 27001 compliance and information security.

Here’s a quick overview of an ISO® 27001 consultant’s responsibilities:

• Define ISMS scope

• Design, create, and implement ISMS

• Draft information security procedures, policies, and SoA (Statement of Applicability)

• Participate in staff security awareness training

• Perform gap analyses and internal audits (aka readiness assessments)

• Undergo risk assessments and design treatment plans

• Implement vendor risk management

Develop an ISO® 27001 Working Team & Secure Buy-In From Leadership

Form a team of employees to be in charge of ISO® 27001 compliance activities. You’ll also need to secure approval from higher-ups before moving forward with the audit preparation. Research the ISO® 27001 standard in detail and explain to leadership how achieving the certification could benefit the company to get their support.

When developing your ISO® 27001 team, make sure to assign roles and responsibilities to the right people. For example, employees overseeing more technical aspects of the ISMS should have expertise in those areas. Just make sure you’re not missing any key roles or tasks during team assignments.

You should also consider who will be affected by changes to your information security so you can inform them of your plans in advance. Passing the ISO® 27001 audit takes a lot of work and support from various departments — that’s why it’s essential to have good communication lines and transparency across your company.

Set Policies and Assign Responsibilities

Part of satisfying ISO® 27001 requirements involves training your staff on information security and risk management. Your team should understand how to respond to security threats and which controls to implement in different scenarios. Setting up policies can help inform employees on what they can and cannot do with your ISMS.

The goal is to ensure they use the right procedures when dealing with vulnerabilities, which should keep your sensitive data and assets well-protected. Remember to explain why these policies are in place, so your staff knows how to properly implement them (you can teach them during security awareness training programs).