We’ll be covering the key cyber security frameworks with an overview of the Essential Eight, SMB1001, NIST, and ISO 27001, and discussing how a trusted Technology Services Partner (like us) can take the stress out of your compliance journey. First, let’s take a step back and look at the benefits these frameworks can deliver.
Why Should Businesses Use Cyber Security Frameworks?
Adopting a cyber security framework delivers significant benefits for your business, ensuring you can safeguard your team, data, and operations. This includes:
- Allowing you to identify current vulnerabilities and threats, and implement robust layered protection – which is essential as cyber attacks in Australia continue to increase and become more complex. This layered approach ensures you can manage risks, mitigate damage, reduce downtime, avoid financial loss, and protect your business’ reputation.
- Helping your business follow best practices and comply with regulatory requirements, like the Privacy Act 1988 and the Notifiable Data Breaches
- Showcasing a dedication to cyber security, supporting stronger relationships with clients and stakeholders (who get peace of mind), and providing a competitive edge so you can stand out to and win over potential customers.
Now, let’s look at the different options you should have on your radar.
Essential Eight – Australian Signals Directorate (ASD)
Developed by the Australian government’s ASD agency, the Essential Eight provides eight baseline mitigation strategies that safeguard businesses against common cyber attacks. This framework is tiered and supports gradual improvement, with three Maturity Levels that businesses can aim for based on their environment.
Key Elements:
This framework’s mitigation strategies focus on:
- Patching applications
- Patching operating systems
- Multi-factor authentication
- Restricting administrative privileges
- Application control
- Restricting Microsoft Office macros
- User application hardening
- Regular backups
Benefits:
The Essential Eight ensures your business can build stronger defences with layered cyber security solutions. As a result, you can prevent successful attacks and minimise their impact.
SMB1001 – Dynamic Standards International (DSI)
The SMB1001 cyber security standard was created for small to medium sized businesses (SMBs), with a focus on the fact that an SMB’s resources and requirements differ from larger companies. The result is a simpler and more affordable adoption process, allowing SMBs in every industry to effectively build their cyber defences. The framework is multi-tiered with five levels, and can support your ISO 27001 certification journey.
Key Elements:
This framework covers:
- Technology management
- Access management
- Backup and recovery
- Policies and processes
- Education and training
Benefits:
SMB1001 delivers a cost-effective and easier to implement framework, with tiered levels that make enhancing your business’ cyber defences more achievable.
NIST Cyber Security Framework – National Institute of Standards and Technology
This internationally recognised framework is developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (a US government agency), and is used by many businesses around the world. It provides a structured, flexible, and comprehensive framework to manage risks, and is suitable for organisations of all sizes and in any industry.
Key Elements:
This framework focuses on six functions:
- Govern
- Identify
- Protect
- Detect
- Respond
- Recover
Benefits:
The NIST cyber security framework helps to build trust with stakeholders and clients, uses uncomplicated language to improve communication across teams, and allows businesses to understand current risks and prioritise efforts based the level of damage they would cause.
ISO 27001 – International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO)
This framework is an international standard for information security management. It ensures your business can reduce risks and keep data secure, supporting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of company information alongside data from third parties like clients and vendors.
Key Elements:
This framework covers three principles around information security:
- Confidentiality
- Integrity
- Availability
Benefits:
As an international standard, ISO 27001 provides a competitive advantage, and demonstrates a serious commitment to cyber security that builds trust with clients and stakeholders.
How Bekkers Can Help
At Bekkers we’re well versed in ensuring our clients can achieve and maintain compliance for a diverse range of cyber security certifications. If you’re not sure which framework is right for your business, we can take the stress out of the process and identify the best option based on your industry, size, and requirements.
From here we kick off your journey with an initial risk assessment that supports an informed approach, before delivering streamlined implementation and ongoing management that harnesses leading tools and expert knowledge.
We’ve been supporting local businesses to build their cyber security posture for decades, so you can trust you’re in safe hands with our team. If you’re ready to get started, you can get in touch with our team here.
