How to Obtain an ISO 27001 Information Security Management System Certificate

How to obtain an ISO 27001 certificate

For organizations asking how to obtain an ISO 27001 certificate, Sistem Patent Kalite Certification and Test Consultancy is a direct route to information and consultancy. An ISO 27001 system that the organization has implemented internally becomes certifiable once it passes two audits by an independent, accredited certification body and once the organization maintains the system between audits.

If the intent is to obtain consultancy or to pursue certification, the first step is to implement ISO 27001 in a way that meets the requirements of the standard. The organization then signs an agreement with a certification body for the certification work. The certification body performs a conformity-assessment audit to check whether the ISO 27001 information security management system meets the requirements of the standard. If the audit confirms that the requirements are met, the certification body certifies the organization's information security system.

At that point the organization gains the right to use the ISO 27001 certificate. After the certificate has been issued, the certification body runs surveillance audits at defined intervals (not exceeding 12 months) to check whether the organization continues to meet the requirements of the standard. Depending on the arrangement, review audits are scheduled once or twice in the following year at periods the organization agrees with the certification body. The certificate is valid for 3 years, and at the end of year three a recertification audit assesses the progress the organization has made during the cycle. Although the organization holds the right to use the certificate throughout the three-year period, the certificate is effectively entrusted to the organization by the certification body for a defined term.

Sistem Patent Kalite Certification and Test Consultancy provides ISO 27001 certification services through its consultancy offices in Izmir, Istanbul, Ankara, Bursa, Adana, Antalya, Konya, Kayseri, and Eskisehir. Choose us to meet your information-security goals and to support your forward plans with a credible, maintained certificate.

Common preparation gaps

The most common gaps we see in ISO 27001 preparation are an incomplete asset register, a risk-assessment that covers the IT department but not the rest of the organization, a statement of applicability that contradicts the actual controls in place, and an internal-audit program that does not touch every control in the applicable Annex A set. Each of these can cost the organization a major finding during the Stage 2 audit. We address them before the audit starts rather than during the corrective-action window that follows it.

After the certificate is issued

Certification does not end with the Stage 2 audit. Between surveillance visits, the organization is expected to run internal audits against the full scope of the management system, track its risk treatment plan, close incidents through a documented process, and update its statement of applicability as the environment changes. We support the full three-year cycle rather than only the initial audit, because the value of the certificate depends on what happens between audits, not only during them.