360inControl® - Blog | Heike Klaus/1. April 2025/Governance Risk & Compliance, Information Security Management System (ISMS)
Challenge 1 – Expanding Scope and Complexity
Challenge
- NIS 2 mandates that Entities may be designated as Essential or Important depending on factors such as size, sector and criticality and applies to a wider and deeper pool of entities.
- This raises complexity to determine compliance obligations and required security measures.
Solution
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Assess and determine the company’s NIS Entity classification.
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Conduct a compliance gap assessment to understand obligations.
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Use a risk-based approach to prioritize necessary requirements.
Digital ISMS
- Supports organizations to streamline compliance by centralizing risk assessments, policy management, and reporting.
- Ensures that cyber-security measures are documented, monitored, and continuously improved.
Challenge 2 – Senior Management Accountability
Challenge
- NIS 2 mandates that Senior Management have ultimate responsibility for cyber security and risk management.
- This raises complexity to determine compliance obligations and required security measures.
Solution
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Senior Management approves the adequacy of cyber security and risk management, supervises the implementation and is accountable for non-compliance.
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Implement monitoring and reporting on management level.
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Leverage cyber security training on management and employee level.
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Digital ISMS
- An ISMS integrates compliance tracking and risk management, ensuring that both legal and IT teams have access to a centralized compliance dashboard for improved collaboration.
Challenge 3 – Legal and Cyber Security Coordination
Challenge
- Legal teams focus on regulatory compliance, while cyber security teams handle technical measures.
- Both parties tend to work in silos: This may raise confusion, double work and unalignment.
Solution
-
Create cross-functional working groups with legal, IT, and security experts.
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Develop clear governance structures defining roles and responsibilities.
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Perform collaborative risk assessment exercise to align legal and technical perspectives.
Digital ISMS
- Supports organizations to streamline compliance by automating risk assessments, policy management, and reporting.
- Ensures that cyber-security measures are documented, monitored, and continuously improved.
Challenge 4 – Core Cyber Security & Data Security Measures
Challenge
- NIS 2 mandates to manage the risks posed to the systems which underpin their services,
- and prevent or minimize the impact of incidents on their and other services.
Solution
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Implement «Zero Trust» security principles and enforce least-privilege access controls.
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Conduct regular penetration testing and security audits.
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Enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) and implement secure access controls.
- Ensure compliance with data protection laws like GDPR and deploy Data Loss Prevention (DLP) measures to mitigate data breaches.
- Ensure the implementation and training of Information-/Cyber Security Policies and Guidelines.
Digital ISMS
- An ISMS integrates compliance tracking and risk management, ensuring that both legal and Cyber Security/ IT teams have access to a centralized compliance dashboard for improved collaboration.
Challenge 5 – Incident Reporting & Response Requirements
Challenge
- NIS 2 mandates strict timelines for reporting security incidents which have a ‘significant impact’ on the provision of their services:
- 24 hours: initial notification
- 72 hours: detailed report
- One (1) month: full investigation report
Solution
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Establish a structured incident response plan with predefined escalation procedures.
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Implement automated monitoring tools to improve early threat detection.
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Conduct regular tabletop exercises to test response readiness.
Digital ISMS
- Supports organizations to streamline compliance by automating risk assessments, policy management, and reporting.
- Ensures that cyber-security measures are documented, monitored, and continuously improved.
Challenge 6 – Business Continuity & Crisis Management
Challenge
- NIS 2 mandates to Implement strong Business Continuity and Crisis Management measures.
Solution
Digital ISMS
- An ISMS helps organizations to implement the relevant controls, policies, processes and monitoring measures.
- Centralized and workflow based Asset Management system.
- Supporting self-assessments, monitoring of existing risks and tracking of tasks and remediation activities.
- Hence organization can facilitate and apply changes continuously.
Challenge 7 – Third-Party & Supplier Security Management
Challenge
- NIS 2 extends cybersecurity obligations to third-party suppliers.
Solution
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Ensure Cyber Security requirements are embedded in the contracts.
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Develop supplier security assessments, contractual obligations, and regular security audits for critical suppliers.
- Implement real-time threat intelligence sharing with key partners.
Digital ISMS
- Supports organizations to streamline compliance by automating risk assessments, policy management, and reporting.
- Develop supplier security assessments, contractual obligations, and regular security audits for critical suppliers.
- Implement real-time threat intelligence sharing with key partners.
Take Away
- Implementing NIS 2 requires a strategic approach, balancing legal, cybersecurity, and business needs.
- Leveraging a digital ISMS
- simplifies compliance,
- enhances risk management,
- and fosters seamless collaboration between legal, cybersecurity and IT teams.
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