The regularity with which the UK government is hitting the headlines around data management during the pandemic is disheartening. When the NHS test and trace compromised GDPR back in June those of us in the sector expected to see a visibly demonstrated improvement in the government’s information security posture. Instead, we’ve seen further high profile examples of system failure in recent months. But while it can be tempting to criticise the government’s handling of data during the pandemic, valuable lessons are being learned.
Control in fast-moving and difficult circumstances like these is undeniably challenging. Effectively, a complicated new product has been rapidly developed in response to a global emergency, with multiple stakeholder involvement. It’s not realistic to expect all parties involved to have the kind of fully integrated systems that would likely have identified the recent glitch.
Given the extraordinary amount of moving parts, it’s unreasonable to criticise the government for failing to have a fully integrated management system in place with its partners, having integrated APIs and tech to talk to each other. But to avoid similar challenges occurring in the future, it is reasonable for us to expect them to demonstrate robust and appropriate data sharing and managing protocols. The best way to do this is for all parts of the coordinating supply chain to adhere to the global ISO 27001 information security standard. Adhering to this framework is the best way to create consistency around any incongruent policies and controls and deliver assurance around information security processes.
To find out how ISMS.online can take you from a hard to control spreadsheet hell to the comfort and assurance of a fully integrated and transparent information security management system, please get in touch. We’re here to help.