Free Information Security Management Standard (ISMS) Builder

1. Purpose

This standard establishes the governance framework for [Your Company]'s Information Security Management System (ISMS). It defines how we manage information security through policies, procedures, standards, and controls to protect our assets, customers, and business operations while meeting SOC 2 compliance requirements.

2. Scope

Applies to all information security policies, procedures, standards, and controls within the organization. Covers all employees, contractors, third parties, information systems, data, networks, facilities, and business processes. Includes security governance, risk management, compliance, and continuous improvement activities.

3. Roles and Responsibilities

Security Leadership

• Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – ultimate accountability for information security, approves security strategy
• Chief Security Officer (CSO) – owns ISMS, leads security program, reports to executive leadership and Board
• Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) – manages technical security operations, incident response, security architecture
• Chief Technology Officer (CTO) – ensures security is integrated into technology decisions and infrastructure
• Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) – oversees regulatory compliance, audit coordination, policy adherence

Security Steering Committee

• Composition: CSO (Chair), CTO, CCO, CFO, Legal Counsel, VP Engineering, VP Operations
• Meeting Frequency: Monthly
• Responsibilities: Review security program performance, approve policies and standards, allocate security budget, prioritize security initiatives, review risk assessments, oversee compliance activities

Security Operations Team

• Security Engineers: Implement and maintain security controls, tools, and infrastructure
• Security Analysts: Monitor threats, investigate incidents, perform security assessments
• Security Architects: Design secure systems, review architecture, establish security patterns
• Compliance Analysts: Track control compliance, coordinate audits, manage evidence collection

All Employees

• Follow security policies, procedures, and standards
• Complete required security training annually
• Report security incidents and vulnerabilities
• Protect company assets and customer data
• Practice secure computing and data handling

4. Information Security Policy Framework

Our security policy framework consists of three levels:

Level 1: Policies (Strategic)

• Purpose: High-level requirements and principles approved by executive leadership
• Audience: All employees and stakeholders
• Review Cycle: Annually
• Approval: Executive leadership or Board of Directors
• Examples: Information Security Policy, Acceptable Use Policy, Data Classification Policy

Level 2: Standards (Tactical)

• Purpose: Specific mandatory requirements and technical specifications
• Audience: Technical teams and security practitioners
• Review Cycle: Annually or when technology changes
• Approval: CSO or Security Steering Committee
• Examples: Password Standard, Encryption Standard, Logging Standard, Patch Management Standard

Level 3: Procedures (Operational)

• Purpose: Step-by-step instructions for implementing policies and standards
• Audience: Specific teams performing the activities
• Review Cycle: Annually or when processes change
• Approval: Process owner or department head
• Examples: Access Provisioning Procedure, Incident Response Runbook, Backup Procedure

5. Core Security Policies

The following policies form the foundation of our ISMS:

• Information Security Policy – overarching security principles and commitments
• Access Management Policy – user access provisioning, review, and de-provisioning
• Asset Management Policy – inventory and lifecycle management of assets
• Change Management Policy – controlled changes to production systems
• Data Management Policy – data classification, handling, and retention
• Incident Management Policy – incident detection, response, and recovery
• Business Continuity Policy – continuity planning and disaster recovery
• Human Resources Policy – background checks, training, and offboarding
• Vendor Management Policy – third-party risk management
• Vulnerability Management Policy – vulnerability scanning and remediation
• Cryptographic Management Policy – encryption and key management
• Physical Security Policy – facility access and environmental controls

6. Policy Lifecycle Management

Policy Creation

• Policy owner identifies need based on business requirements, compliance obligations, or risk assessment
• Policy owner drafts policy using standard template
• Legal and Compliance review for regulatory alignment
• Security Steering Committee reviews and provides feedback
• Executive leadership or Board approves policy
• Policy published to company intranet and communicated to employees

Policy Review and Update

• Annual Review: All policies reviewed annually by policy owner
• Triggered Review: Review triggered by significant business changes, new regulations, major incidents, or audit findings
• Review Process: Policy owner assesses if updates needed, drafts changes, obtains approvals, publishes updated version
• Version Control: All versions retained with revision history tracking

Policy Communication

• New policies announced via company-wide email and all-hands meeting
• Policies accessible on company intranet with search capability
• Policy summaries included in employee onboarding
• Material changes to policies require employee acknowledgment
• Annual security awareness training includes policy overview

7. Common Controls Framework (CCF)

We maintain a Common Controls Framework that maps our security controls to multiple compliance frameworks:

• SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria: Security, Availability, Confidentiality, Privacy
• ISO 27001: Information Security Management
• NIST Cybersecurity Framework: Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, Recover
• GDPR: Data protection and privacy requirements
• CCPA: California Consumer Privacy Act requirements

The CCF includes:

• Control objectives and descriptions
• Implementation guidance and requirements
• Testing procedures for each control
• Control ownership and accountability
• Mapping to compliance frameworks
• Evidence collection requirements

8. Information Security Program

Program Objectives

• Protect: Safeguard confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information assets
• Comply: Meet regulatory requirements and contractual obligations
• Enable: Support business objectives through secure technology
• Improve: Continuously enhance security posture and maturity

Program Components

• Governance: Policies, standards, procedures, and oversight
• Risk Management: Risk assessments, treatment plans, and monitoring
• Security Operations: Monitoring, incident response, and vulnerability management
• Compliance: Audit coordination, evidence management, and regulatory compliance
• Training: Security awareness and specialized training programs
• Technology: Security tools, controls, and infrastructure

Program Metrics and KPIs

We track the following metrics to measure program effectiveness:

• Incident Response: Mean time to detect (MTTD), mean time to respond (MTTR), incident volume
• Vulnerability Management: Critical vulnerabilities open, mean time to remediate, scan coverage
• Access Management: Access review completion rate, orphaned accounts, MFA adoption
• Training: Training completion rate, phishing simulation click rate
• Compliance: Control compliance rate, audit findings, policy exceptions

9. Security Steering Committee

Purpose

The Security Steering Committee provides executive oversight, strategic direction, and resource allocation for the information security program.

Meeting Cadence

• Monthly Meetings: Review program performance, approve policies, discuss strategic initiatives
• Quarterly Business Reviews: Comprehensive program review with Board or Audit Committee
• Ad-Hoc Meetings: Major incidents, significant risks, or urgent decisions

Standard Agenda

• Review of security metrics and KPIs
• Incident summary and post-mortems
• Risk assessment updates and treatment plans
• Policy and standard approvals
• Compliance status and audit activities
• Budget and resource allocation
• Strategic initiatives and roadmap
• Threat intelligence and industry trends

10. Exception Management

Exception Request Process

Exceptions to security policies, standards, and procedures may be granted in limited circumstances:

• Request Submission: Exception requester submits formal request via exception management system
• Justification: Business need, technical limitation, or temporary workaround documented
• Risk Assessment: Security team assesses risk of granting exception
• Compensating Controls: Alternative controls identified to mitigate risk
• Approval: CSO approves exceptions; high-risk exceptions require CEO approval
• Duration: Exceptions granted for specific time period (typically 30-90 days)
• Review: Exceptions reviewed quarterly; expired or no longer needed exceptions removed

Exception Documentation

All exceptions include:

• Policy or standard being excepted
• Business justification and necessity
• Risk assessment and impact analysis
• Compensating controls implemented
• Approval signatures and date
• Expiration date and renewal requirements
• Review history and status updates

11. Compliance and Audit Management

Compliance Activities

• Control Testing: Ongoing testing of controls per CCF requirements
• Evidence Collection: Systematic collection and storage of control evidence
• Gap Assessments: Periodic assessments against compliance frameworks
• Audit Coordination: SOC 2, ISO 27001, and customer audits
• Regulatory Monitoring: Track regulatory changes and update controls

Audit Preparation

• Audit Committee approves annual audit plan
• Internal readiness assessment conducted pre-audit
• Evidence packages prepared for each control domain
• Audit kick-off meeting with auditor to align on scope
• Document and information requests responded to promptly
• Management representations and confirmations provided
• Post-audit remediation plan for any findings

12. Security Awareness and Training

Training Requirements

• New Hire Training: Security awareness overview during onboarding (within first week)
• Annual Training: All employees complete annual security awareness training
• Role-Based Training: Specialized training for technical roles (engineers, security team, IT admins)
• Leadership Training: Security governance training for managers and executives

Training Topics

• Security policies and acceptable use
• Data classification and handling
• Password security and MFA
• Phishing and social engineering
• Physical security and clean desk
• Incident reporting procedures
• Privacy and data protection
• Secure development practices (for engineers)

13. Communication and Reporting

Internal Communication

• Monthly Security Newsletter: Security tips, policy updates, threat alerts
• Quarterly All-Hands: CSO presents security program performance to company
• Security Slack Channel: #security for questions, announcements, and incident reporting
• Policy Intranet: Central repository for all policies and procedures

Executive Reporting

• Monthly to Security Steering Committee: Metrics, incidents, compliance status
• Quarterly to Board/Audit Committee: Comprehensive program review, major incidents, audit results
• Annual to Board: Security strategy, risk assessment summary, program investment

External Communication

• Security Website: Public security page with contact information and commitments
• Customer Communications: Security questionnaire responses, audit reports
• Regulatory Filings: Breach notifications, compliance reports

14. Continuous Improvement

We continuously improve our ISMS through:

• Post-Incident Reviews: Learn from security incidents and near-misses
• Audit Findings: Remediate audit findings and implement recommendations
• Risk Assessments: Update controls based on evolving threats and business changes
• Industry Best Practices: Adopt security frameworks and standards
• Peer Benchmarking: Compare program maturity to industry peers
• Security Roadmap: Multi-year plan for security investments and improvements

15. Document Management

Policy Storage

• All policies, standards, and procedures stored on company intranet
• Version control system tracks all changes
• Historical versions retained for 7 years
• Search functionality for easy discovery

Evidence Management

• Control evidence stored in compliance management system
• Evidence retention per audit requirements (minimum 7 years)
• Access controls limit evidence viewing to compliance team and auditors
• Annual evidence repository cleanup and archival

16. References

• SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria
• ISO/IEC 27001:2022 – Information Security Management
• NIST Cybersecurity Framework v2.0
• NIST SP 800-53 – Security and Privacy Controls
• [Your Company] Information Security Policy
• [Your Company] Risk Management Framework

17. Revision History

Date	Version	Author	Description
[Date]	1.0	Chief Security Officer	Initial release