Take a plunge into the world of ISO 27001 with these recommended reads
As a professional embarking on your first journey implementing ISO 27001, you are probably hungry for knowledge and eager to make progress. While starting a new project may be exciting, it can also be daunting if you lack relevant experience and cannot rely on internal support and guidance.
Many ISO 27001 practitioners attend ISO 27001 Lead Implementer courses to gain practical knowledge and skills to develop an information security management system (ISMS). Some go even further by securing a budget to call in an experienced ISO 27001 consultant to guide them through the process and help them with the more complex aspects of the project. But most information security professionals start the journey by simply reading a lot on the subject and doing initial preparation on their own – a method that is not only cost effective, but also gives them a good foundation to understand what is needed for successful ISO 27001 delivery.
Here are five books from IT Governance’s own ISO 27001 library that we believe can help ISO 27001 practitioners prepare for ISO 27001 implementation.
The Case for ISO 27001
As the title says, this book explains the business case for implementing ISO 27001 within an organisation. It highlights the importance and outlines the many benefits of the Standard, making it an ideal supporting document for developing an ISO 27001 project proposal.
The Case for ISO 27001 can be ordered from the IT Governance website.
IT Governance – An International Guide to Data Security and ISO27001/ISO27002
Now in its sixth edition, the bestselling IT Governance: An International Guide to Data Security and ISO27001/ISO27002 is the perfect manual for designing, documenting and implementing an ISO 27001-compliant ISMS, and seeking certification. Selected as the textbook for the Open University’s postgraduate information security course, this comprehensive book offers a systematic process and covers the main topics in depth.
Jointly written by renowned ISO 27001 experts Alan Calder and Steve Watkins, IT Governance: An International Guide to Data Security and ISO27001/ISO27002, sixth edition is due to be released 3 September 2015, and is now available for pre-order.
Nine Steps to Success
If you are looking for a concise, practical guide to implementing an ISMS and achieving ISO 27001 certification, consider obtaining a copy of Nine Steps to Success. Written from first-hand experience, it guides you through an ISO 27001 implementation project step-by-step, covering the most essentials aspects including gaining management support, scoping, planning, communication, risk assessment and documentation.
ISO 27001 Assessments Without Tears
With ISO 27001 certification being the final goal for most organisations implementing the Standard, the pressure is usually on the ISO 27001 practitioners to ensure that staff are prepared to answer tricky auditor questions. ISO 27001 Assessments Without Tears is a succinctly written pocket guide that explains what an ISO 27001 assessment is, why it matters for the organisation, and what individual staff should and should not do if an auditor chooses to question them.
ISO 27001 in a Windows Environment
Most ISO 27001 implementations will involve a Windows® environment at some level. Unfortunately, there is often a knowledge gap between those trying to implement ISO 27001 and the IT specialists trying to put the necessary best-practice controls in place using Microsoft®’s technical controls. Written by information security expert Brian Honan, ISO27001 in a Windows Environment bridges that gap and gives essential guidance to everyone involved in a Windows-based ISO27001 project.
