Things To Consider While Creating An Iso 27001 Remote Access Policy

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The most prominent universal standard for information security is ISO 27001. It was released by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Both are eminent global organizations that produce global standards. The ISO/IEC 27000 series of standards, which focused on information security, include ISO 27001. Its full designation is ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Information Security Management Systems Standard for Information Security, Cybersecurity, and Privacy Protection.
In today's data-driven IT world, maintaining and securing data/information has become the most important aspect of running the organization. A remote access policy is a document that protects a company's information from unauthorized access. This is a written ISO 27001 document that contains instructions for connecting to the company's network from outside the office. It assists enterprises in securing corporate data and monitoring users who log in from insecure networks such as their home networks.
Due to its many flexibility and cost-saving benefits of remote working (doing business from ...
... your home or while on a business trip) is growing in popularity and acceptance by multinational companies. Being able to access your IT infrastructure using a variety of remote access techniques is equivalent to having users physically sit in your associated network and access it. According to research, 70% of employees work remotely on average each week, making remote work more common than ever. The information accessed, processed, or stored at teleworking sites can be secured and protected by putting in place a teleworking control policy and supporting pertinent security measures.
The administration of the company and the productivity of the working unit depend on remote access to the corporate IT infrastructure network. By creating a secure access policy and putting ISO compliance procedures in place, organizations must do their utmost to minimize external threats. The goal of the ISO 27001 remote access policy is to specify the guidelines and conditions for gaining access to the corporate network. Rules must be established to prevent exposure from unauthorized use, which could result in the loss of the company's confidential information and intellectual property, damage to its reputation, and resource compromise.
What to consider for developing ISO 27001 remote access policy?
Any business or institution that permits remote work must have a policy, an operational plan, and a procedure specifying that the terms and limitations are compliant with the relevant and permissible law. Following are some considerations for the ISO 27001 remote access policy:
• The first and most obvious problem to consider is the physical security of the remote work site, which includes the facility and its surroundings.
• Users should never reveal their login or email password to anyone, including family members.
• Users should also take care not to break any of the organization's policies, indulge in any illegal actions, or utilize the access for outside business purposes while remotely accessing the corporate network.
• Individuals must deactivate unwanted remote access and connections as part of the configuration of their device.
• It is required to explain the need for access to internal data or systems and provide a definition of the work, as well as the sensitivity and classification of the information.
• Encrypted data should be sent over remote access connections, and multi-factor authentication is required to allow access. Additionally, it must prevent public information from being stored and processed.
• There should be a policy for removing authority and access, as well as for returning the device when remote working activities are discontinued or no longer necessary. This will help to limit the capabilities of remote access users.
• For continued traceability in the event of an issue, each connection must be recorded. The issue of unauthorized access to these logs must be resolved. The audit trail is more reliable when firewall and VPN devices are logged in a tamper-proof manner.
• It is recommended not to implement split tunnelling since users can bypass any infrastructure security measures that might be in place at the gateway level.
• A firewall's acceptance and rejection policy need to be carefully thought out and configured.
• To have the entire logs, the firewall operating mode should be set to stateful rather than stateless.
Source: https://27001securitycertification.wordpress.com/2023/01/07/things-to-consider-while-creating-an-iso-27001-remote-access-policy/