No Result
View All Result
SUBSCRIBE | NO FEES, NO PAYWALLS
MANAGE MY SUBSCRIPTION
NEWSLETTER
Corporate Compliance Insights
  • Home
  • About
    • About CCI
    • Writing for CCI
    • NEW: CCI Press – Book Publishing
    • Advertise With Us
  • Explore Topics
    • See All Articles
    • Compliance
    • Ethics
    • Risk
    • FCPA
    • Governance
    • Fraud
    • Internal Audit
    • HR Compliance
    • Cybersecurity
    • Data Privacy
    • Financial Services
    • Well-Being at Work
    • Leadership and Career
    • Opinion
  • Vendor News
  • Career Connection
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • Submit an Event
  • Library
    • Whitepapers & Reports
    • eBooks
    • CCI Press & Compliance Bookshelf
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Subscribe
  • Home
  • About
    • About CCI
    • Writing for CCI
    • NEW: CCI Press – Book Publishing
    • Advertise With Us
  • Explore Topics
    • See All Articles
    • Compliance
    • Ethics
    • Risk
    • FCPA
    • Governance
    • Fraud
    • Internal Audit
    • HR Compliance
    • Cybersecurity
    • Data Privacy
    • Financial Services
    • Well-Being at Work
    • Leadership and Career
    • Opinion
  • Vendor News
  • Career Connection
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • Submit an Event
  • Library
    • Whitepapers & Reports
    • eBooks
    • CCI Press & Compliance Bookshelf
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Subscribe
No Result
View All Result
Corporate Compliance Insights
Home Data Privacy

ISO 27701: Will it Be the New GDPR Certification?

New Standard Provides Guidance on Handling PII

by David Forman
August 27, 2019
in Data Privacy
thick hardbound book of standards

Despite the GDPR being in effect for more than a year, to date, there has been no certification standard for it. Coalfire’s David Forman explores how the newly published ISO 27701 is aligned with GDPR and the possibility and ramifications of its use as a GDPR certification standard.

On August 6, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published the ISO/IEC 27701:2019 (ISO 27701) standard five months ahead of schedule. This release is the first international privacy standard; it outlines the requirements for implementing an organizational program – known as a Privacy Information Management System (PIMS) – to govern the handling of personally identifiable information (PII).

ISO 27701 is the first ISO standard to reference to external frameworks or publications not actually developed by ISO. In this case, that external reference was none other than the headline-grabbing European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Considering the history and current state of privacy concerns, global privacy regulation, enforcement and this current passage of ISO 27701, one must contemplate whether ISO 27701 could become the certification path for GDPR.

Read: The Future of Data Privacy Legislation

To understand the standard’s potential ramifications for demonstrating compliance to privacy rules, we must first look at the evolution of regulators’ views on privacy since the introduction of the GDPR, which was transformative in setting a new baseline and interpretation for data subject rights.

Since its effective date in May 2018, violations of the GDPR have carried blockbuster penalties for companies like Google, Facebook, Marriott and British Airways due to the perceived mishandling or negligence toward the protection of PII.

In defense of these early examples that have been targeted by the data protection authorities (who wish to demonstrate their ability to enforce the GDPR):

How can these global companies gain any sort of assurance that they are doing enough to conform to this law when risk, by definition, can never be fully mitigated?

What is the modern security officer supposed to objectively demonstrate to provide confidence to its board that they have an acceptable level of protection?

And what influence does this new role of a Data Protection Officer DPO actually have if security and the protection of privacy are still commonly mistaken as outputs of the same control activities?

Organizations have attempted to garner further interpretations and clarifications of the GDPR, yet there is still no endorsed method for determining conformity – despite “certification mechanisms” being explicitly stated within Article 42 of the GDPR (but not elucidated).

As pressure has increased for data protection authorities like the Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés (CNIL) and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to act swiftly on investigations and to provide commentary on interpretations of the GDPR, it is peculiar that the CNIL, the French national data protection authority, had representation in the technical committee that met in Singapore during last month’s standards development meeting to discuss the final revisions and issuance of ISO 27701.

In inspecting minutes from the event, the primary talking points focused on pushing quick adoption of the PIMS through renumbering the International Standard and mapping these new requirements to the GDPR. The technical committee was able to (perhaps conveniently) align all of the articles within the GDPR to ISO 27701, with the exception of Article 43, which details requirements for bodies providing certification to GDPR or an accreditation program of sorts to ensure auditors of the standard maintain some form of common alignment.

While ISO 27701 is not yet governed by accreditation bodies such as the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) or ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB), it is expected that certification bodies will begin to audit against this new international standard despite no established scheme being defined at the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) level.

In many ways, this certification mechanism is past due, as the law that defines the scheme has already been in force for over a year. Should the PIMS become synonymous with “GDPR certification” via endorsement through any of the data protection authorities, organizations will finally have a method to objectively demonstrate conformity as a result of third-party audits.

Furthermore, an attested compliance program with regular, independent inspections will spark a number of downstream effects on the sector, including better defenses during GDPR-related investigations; more elaborate clarifications to privacy laws, product and technological enablement; and more objective information for insurance underwriters to determine risk.

This new standard is a critical milestone for the ongoing management of privacy-related risks and an alternative normative reference that promotes the need to mature processes as the context of the organization evolves. Conformity assessment bodies will likely be leveraged for the immediate audits and assessments of this new standard due to overlapping existing accreditation requirements with those provisions detailed for bodies providing certification within the GDPR.


Tags: GDPRInternational Organization for Standardization (ISO)Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Previous Post

Putting Data Security Risks in Perspective

Next Post

Natural Disasters: Protecting Employees and Planning for the Worst

David Forman

David Forman

David Forman is the Senior Director of ISO Services & Global Accreditation Manager at Coalfire, a provider of cybersecurity advisory and assessment services.

Related Posts

gdpr

UK Resurrects Data Protection Reforms, EU Court Rules on GDPR in Civil Cases

by Jonathan Armstrong and André Bywater
March 15, 2023

Recent courtroom and legislative action in Europe will likely have ripple effects around the world for companies subject to regulations...

eu flag

Preparing Your Company for the Latest GDPR Data Transfer Developments & Upcoming Deadlines

by Kevin L. Coy
November 30, 2022

An EU court decision and legislative moves in the U.S. and UK make compliance with privacy regulations increasingly difficult. Arnall...

minidata_b

Honey, I Shrunk the Data: How to Keep Customer Info on a Need-to-Know Basis

by Parker Poe
November 30, 2022

It may be tempting to hoard the data you have gathered on your customers, but an increasing number of regulations...

uk ico data access

UK’s Data Protection Regulator Signals Crackdown on Access Request Violations

by Jonathan Armstrong and André Bywater
October 5, 2022

Data privacy laws in the EU and UK established the right of individuals to find out what personal information organizations...

Next Post
flooded downtown, skyline of Rotterdam

Natural Disasters: Protecting Employees and Planning for the Worst

Compliance Job Interview Q&A

Jump to a Topic

AML Anti-Bribery Anti-Corruption Artificial Intelligence (AI) Automation Banking Board of Directors Board Risk Oversight Business Continuity Planning California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) Code of Conduct Communications Management Corporate Culture COVID-19 Cryptocurrency Culture of Ethics Cybercrime Cyber Risk Data Analytics Data Breach Data Governance DOJ Download Due Diligence Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) ESG FCPA Enforcement Actions Financial Crime Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) GDPR HIPAA Know Your Customer (KYC) Machine Learning Monitoring RegTech Reputation Risk Risk Assessment SEC Social Media Risk Supply Chain Technology Third Party Risk Management Tone at the Top Training Whistleblowing
No Result
View All Result

Privacy Policy

Founded in 2010, CCI is the web’s premier global independent news source for compliance, ethics, risk and information security. 

Got a news tip? Get in touch. Want a weekly round-up in your inbox? Sign up for free. No subscription fees, no paywalls. 

Follow Us

Browse Topics:

  • CCI Press
  • Compliance
  • Compliance Podcasts
  • Cybersecurity
  • Data Privacy
  • eBooks Published by CCI
  • Ethics
  • FCPA
  • Featured
  • Financial Services
  • Fraud
  • Governance
  • GRC Vendor News
  • HR Compliance
  • Internal Audit
  • Leadership and Career
  • On Demand Webinars
  • Opinion
  • Resource Library
  • Risk
  • Uncategorized
  • Videos
  • Webinars
  • Well-Being
  • Whitepapers

© 2022 Corporate Compliance Insights

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About
    • About CCI
    • Writing for CCI
    • NEW: CCI Press – Book Publishing
    • Advertise With Us
  • Explore Topics
    • See All Articles
    • Compliance
    • Ethics
    • Risk
    • FCPA
    • Governance
    • Fraud
    • Internal Audit
    • HR Compliance
    • Cybersecurity
    • Data Privacy
    • Financial Services
    • Well-Being at Work
    • Leadership and Career
    • Opinion
  • Vendor News
  • Career Connection
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • Submit an Event
  • Library
    • Whitepapers & Reports
    • eBooks
    • CCI Press & Compliance Bookshelf
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Subscribe

© 2022 Corporate Compliance Insights

Welcome to CCI. This site uses cookies. Please click OK to accept. Privacy Policy
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT