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What Makes a Good ISO 27001 Compliance Platform?

For CISOs: Reduce certification risk and see control coverage, risks, and assets in one structured view. Filter, export, and present evidence clearly when you need it.

For GRC Managers: Publish policies to the right people, track read-and-acknowledge, and generate clean exports and PDFs for auditors—without juggling tools.

For IT/Ops Leads: Keep risk maps aligned to how you actually score likelihood and impact, and link risks to treatments and controls for traceable change.

For Founders/COOs: Establish repeatable governance—KPIs, responsibilities, and simple reporting—so the ISMS scales with the business and auditor expectations.

  • ISMS Overview shows linked risks, controls, assets, owners, and policy-pack relationships, with filtering and spreadsheet export for stakeholder reporting.
  • Policy Packs let you create post notes, create to-dos, and require “mark as read,” supporting evidence of awareness and acceptance.
  • Statement of Applicability is kept in step with your linked activities and offers a simple export option for audit packs.
  • Risks & Treatments connect decisions to controls and policies; version control supports audit history when material changes occur.
  • KPIs support thresholds, frequencies, and summaries across projects, groups, and accounts—useful for management review inputs.

What ISO 27001 Software Actually Does

ISO 27001 platforms centralise the work of building, running, and proving your ISMS. They keep policies readable, record who has attested, and show progress over time—useful when you need a single source of truth. In ISMS.online, Policy Packs publish policies and guidance in an easy-to-read format, allow audiences to mark items as read, and let admins track “% policies read” and “% compliance tasks completed,” which can lead to clearer evidence for auditors.

Risk registers live alongside treatments and reviews so you can follow an issue from identification to closure. ISMS.online’s Risks & Treatments tool supports defining likelihood/impact, selecting treatment options (e.g., reduce, transfer, tolerate, terminate), and reviewing frequency based on risk position—this suggests better traceability from risk to decision. You can also customise the risk map to match your own methodology.

Controls map to risks and assets, and a living Statement of Applicability ties it together. In ISMS.online, the ISMS Overview shows how Controls, Risks, and Assets interconnect and can be exported as a spreadsheet; SOA reports are online, link to detailed areas, and offer simple export options, which is associated with faster audit preparation.

Evidence collection benefits from readable audit packs: policy-read attestations, user progress, and to-do compliance views are exportable, and earlier SOA versions can be version-controlled for audits. ISMS.online also supports printing/exporting Policy Packs and monitoring urgent to-dos, which can lead to fewer surprises in external assessments.

What It Means for You

  • CISO: Clear line-of-sight from risk to treatment to SOA decision, plus exports for boards and auditors.
  • GRC Manager: Ready-made audit packs (read progress, compliance tasks, SOA exports) reduce prep time.
  • IT/Ops Lead: Reviews, reminders, and urgent to-dos help nudge completion without chasing people.
  • Founder/COO: One overview, exportable reports, and living SOA can lead to a shorter path to certification.



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Core Features That Matter

1) Risk Assessment & Treatment

Build a defensible risk picture that your board understands. ISMS.online supports a 5×5 Risks & Treatments map with review cadences by risk level and clear treatment options (terminate, treat, transfer, tolerate, or combine). Maps can be customised for levels, scoring, labels, colours, and review reminders to match your methodology.

  • CISO: Comparable risk views that suggest consistent decisions and easier challenge.
  • GRC Manager: Pre-set review intervals can lead to timely follow-ups and audit-ready trails.
  • IT/Ops Lead: Custom scoring and reminders are associated with fewer manual trackers.

2) Policy Management & Attestations

Publish policies to defined audiences, track reads, and nudge completion without spreadsheets. You can view a policy pack as an end-user, add/remove audiences, publish, monitor % read and % to-dos completed, flag urgent tasks, and export progress when needed.

  • GRC Manager: Read/compliance dashboards suggest quicker evidence collection for audits.
  • IT/Ops Lead: Urgent to-dos and filters can lead to faster close-out of lagging actions.
  • Founder/COO: Exportable progress is associated with clearer stakeholder reporting.

3) Control Mapping & Living Statement of Applicability (SoA)

Keep your SoA current without rework. ISMS.online provides an online SoA that addresses each Annex A control with applicability and justification, stays in sync with linked policies/controls, and offers a simple export. Associated risks link into the risk treatment plan for traceability.

  • CISO: Live SoA suggests faster impact assessment when controls change.
  • GRC Manager: One export is associated with smaller audit packs and less reconciliation.
  • Founder/COO: Linked risks↔controls can lead to fewer surprises in certification prep.

4) ISMS Overview & Linkage

See your ISMS in one table. The ISMS Overview shows linked controls, risks, assets, owners, policy-pack links, latest notes, filters by view (Controls/Risks/Assets), and includes a spreadsheet export.

  • CISO: Portfolio-level view suggests clearer accountability and ownership.
  • GRC Manager: Exports can lead to quicker evidence hand-offs to auditors.
  • IT/Ops Lead: Filters are associated with faster gap spotting and follow-up.

5) Evidence & Exports; KPIs & Management Review Support

Capture progress where the work happens and export when needed. KPI types (R/G, R/A/G, R/A/G/exceptional, or measure-only) support thresholds, frequencies, reminders, and notes with supporting documents; readings display on a graph for trend discussion in management reviews. Overview and policy modules include export options for audit evidence.

  • GRC Manager: KPI histories and attachments suggest easier 9.3 review materials.
  • IT/Ops Lead: Readings with notes are associated with quicker RCA and SLAs tracking.
  • Founder/COO: Exports across modules can lead to concise board updates.

Top ISO 27001 Platforms at a Glance

Vendor Best For Standout Capability Why It Fits
ISMS.online Mid–enterprise teams wanting one place to run the ISMS ISMS Overview that links controls, risks and assets with exportable views; Policy Packs with read-acknowledge and to-dos; usage monitoring; KPI tracking; printable/exportable packs; dynamic Statement of Applicability export. CISO/GRC: See links and gaps quickly, track read/completion and KPIs without spreadsheets. IT/Ops: Central to-dos and exports simplify prep and evidence.
Drata Fast-moving startups needing continuous control checks Pre-built integrations and automated evidence collection Founder/COO: Quick path to first audit readiness with minimal admin.
Vanta High-growth SaaS scaling audits across customers Large integration ecosystem for evidence gathering GRC Manager: Speeds recurring evidence pulls during surveillance cycles.
Secureframe Teams wanting white-glove onboarding Managed onboarding and auditor network Founder: Reduces lift for first-time certification programs.
OneTrust (Tugboat Logic) Orgs aligning trust, privacy and security Broader trust/privacy workflows with security program tooling CISO: Helpful when privacy programs and ISO sit together.
AuditBoard Enterprises with mature audit & SOX functions Strong audit workflows and issue remediation tracking GRC Manager: Fits where internal audit already uses AuditBoard.
6clicks MSPs / multi-entity rollouts Hub-and-spoke multi-tenant management COO: Useful for managing many subsidiaries or clients.
Conformio SMBs wanting guided ISO projects Structured wizard-style ISO project templates IT/Ops Lead: Straightforward path with checklists and tasks.

How These Tools Streamline Risk Management

A good ISO 27001 platform guides a simple lifecycle: identify risks, assess impact and likelihood, select treatments, monitor progress, and review on schedule. Linked registers, treatments, and reviews suggest fewer hand-offs and cleaner histories. When risks, controls, and assets live in one place, traceability is easier and change decisions are clearer. In ISMS.online, a configurable Risks & Treatments map with review cadences supports this flow and keeps follow-ups visible.

Assessments that use consistent scoring can lead to more comparable decisions across teams. Treatments that link to owners and due dates are associated with faster close-out. Periodic reviews tied to risk level can prompt timely re-assessment without spreadsheets. In ISMS.online, exports from the ISMS Overview help you brief stakeholders or auditors without rebuilding evidence.

What This Means in Practice

  • CISO: Comparable scoring and linked treatments suggest fewer surprises during management review.
  • GRC Manager: One overview export can reduce manual audit pack assembly.
  • IT/Ops Lead: Scheduled reviews by risk level are associated with fewer overdue items.
  • Founder/COO: A single system of record can lead to a shorter path from gaps to fixes.



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Buying Checklist, Pricing Patterns & Timeline to Certificate

Buying Checklist

  • Time to first evidence: How quickly you can publish policies, assign owners, capture read-acknowledgements, and record risk reviews.
  • Statement of Applicability coverage: Confirm the platform supports a living SoA aligned to ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A controls, with clear applicability and justification notes.
  • User adoption: Look for tasks, read/ack workflows, reminders, and simple views for overdue items to keep momentum.
  • Reporting and exports: Check for spreadsheet/PDF exports of risks, policies, and SoA, plus filters for auditor-ready packs.
  • Total cost to run: Consider licenses, onboarding, training, and the ongoing admin time your team will actually spend.

Pricing Patterns

  • Per employee / per seat: Predictable for smaller teams; costs can climb as headcount grows.
  • Workspace or tiered subscription: Often includes modules; evaluate limits on users, projects, or exports.
  • Implementation services: Fixed-fee onboarding can shorten set-up; factor any internal effort for data migration.
  • Admin effort: Budget recurring hours for risk reviews, policy updates, awareness cycles, and pre-audit checks.

Timeline to Certificate

  • Gap analysis (2–4 weeks): Baseline current practices and confirm scope, risks, and asset boundaries.
  • ISMS set-up (2–6 weeks): Establish policies, roles, and repositories; prepare awareness materials and task owners.
  • Risk assessment & treatment (2–6 weeks): Score likelihood/impact, select treatments, and assign due dates and review cadences.
  • Controls & SoA (2–4 weeks): Map selected controls, draft applicability and justification, and publish the living SoA.
  • Operate & collect evidence (8–12 weeks): Run reviews, track attestations, and keep change decisions documented.
  • Internal audit & management review (2–4 weeks): Verify effectiveness and track corrective actions.
  • Certification audits: Stage 1 (readiness) then Stage 2 (certification) with evidence packs prepared from your system.

ISMS.online vs Generic GRC: A Practical Comparison

Capability What Good Looks Like ISMS.online Support Why It Matters
Policy & attestations Publish policies to defined audiences, track “read & understood”, nudge non-readers, and view audit-ready trails. Policy Packs let admins add users/groups, publish, and preview the end-user view; users can “Mark as read.” Compliance dashboards show % read and to-do completion, with drill-downs to User progress and To-do compliance. Urgent to-dos can be flagged to prompt action. GRC Manager: Faster attestations with less chasing. Founder/COO: Clear evidence when customers or auditors ask.
Risk & treatments A configurable, visual risk method with review cadence, categories, and exports to support decisions. Risks & Treatments maps can be customised (levels, labels, colours, scoring). Review reminders can be set by colour; categories can be filtered in the map view; exports are advised before changes. CISO: Consistent scoring supports comparable risk decisions. IT/Ops Lead: Review reminders can lead to fewer stale risks.
Control mapping & SoA A living Statement of Applicability that links to underlying policies/controls and risks, with quick export. The online SOA addresses Annex A controls with applicability and justifications, links to detailed areas, updates dynamically as linked items change, and offers a simple export. Risks tied to the SOA are included in the risk treatment plan. GRC Manager: Linked justifications can reduce audit rework. Founder/COO: Clear scope supports sales and due diligence.
ISMS linkage & exports One overview that shows relationships (risks ↔ controls ↔ assets), filterable and exportable for management. ISMS Overview displays links across controls, risks, assets; shows owners, linked policy packs, latest notes; filters to highlight gaps; exports to spreadsheet; switch views by Controls/Risks/Assets. CISO: Single view suggests faster governance updates. IT/Ops Lead: Exports simplify handoffs and board packs.
KPI / management review Outcome metrics with thresholds, frequencies, and reminders that can be rolled up. KPIs can be created in Projects/Groups/Accounts with types (red/green; RAG; RAG+exceptional; measure-only), thresholds, frequencies, and reminders; summary KPIs are supported. CISO: Regular readings are associated with steadier management reviews. Founder/COO: Focus on outcomes, not effort.

See Why Teams Choose ISMS.online for ISO 27001

Run your ISMS in one place—policies, risks, controls, evidence, and KPIs—so reporting gets simpler and audits feel calmer.

  • One overview, many links. The ISMS Overview shows relationships across Controls, Risks, Assets, owners, Policy Pack links, filters, and a spreadsheet export.
  • Policy Packs with proof of awareness. Publish to defined audiences, track user progress, review historic reads, and flag urgent to-dos; export or print packs for auditors.
  • Living Statement of Applicability. Online SoA covers Annex A with applicability and justification, links to detailed areas, updates as items change, and offers a simple export.
  • KPIs for management review. Create KPIs in Projects, Groups, or Accounts with types (R/G, RAG, RAG+exceptional, measure-only), thresholds, frequencies, reminders, notes, and graphs.

Find out more by booking a demo.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I Need Software to Achieve ISO 27001 Certification?

No. Organisations can certify with documents and spreadsheets. Software can make the work easier and more reliable. ISMS.online provides an ISMS Overview that links risks, controls and assets in one place and exports to spreadsheet, which can support faster reporting. It also offers an online Statement of Applicability that is exportable for audit use. Policy Packs can be exported or printed to PDF for formal distribution.


ISO 27001 vs SOC 2 Tools — What’s Different?

ISO 27001 focuses on building and operating an Information Security Management System (ISMS). SOC 2 focuses on reporting against Trust Services Criteria. ISO tools often emphasise risk treatment, a living Statement of Applicability, and management review rhythms. SOC 2 tools often emphasise evidence mapped to a specific audit period and report. Many programmes use both, but objectives differ.


How Long Does ISO 27001 Implementation Take?

It varies with scope, maturity and resources. Lean teams often plan months, not weeks. A staged approach (gap analysis → build controls and evidence → internal audit → certification audit) is common. Software that centralises links and exports can support faster decision-making and audit prep.


Can We Customise Our Risk Methodology?

You set your criteria and treatments; the standard expects you to define and apply a method. In ISMS.online, the Risks & Treatments tool supports likelihood/impact assessment, risk owner decisions, and treatment options such as reduce, transfer, tolerate or terminate; higher-risk items are reviewed more often. The tool is referenced across the ISMS to show how risks connect to controls and policies.


What Is a Living SoA and Why Does It Matter?

The Statement of Applicability (SoA) lists Annex A controls, notes applicability, and provides justification. ISO/IEC 27001:2022 expects you to include controls and justify any exclusions. In ISMS.online, the online SoA is dynamically updated as linked policies and controls change and can be exported for auditors, which can improve traceability.



Max Edwards

Max works as part of the ISMS.online marketing team and ensures that our website is updated with useful content and information about all things ISO 27001, 27002 and compliance.

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