Internal audit, external audit, financial audit, accounting audit, operational audit... in recent years, legislative inflation and the proliferation of regulations to which companies must adhere have fueled the democratization of this evaluation method: the audit. Often imposed by regulations, generally endured by teams, more rarely followed by concrete effects: what is a security audit?
Definition
Auditing is a process or method for assessing and verifying the relevance and quality of a system's implementation. In security, the aim is to evaluate :
1. Risk exposure - what security risks does a company face (probability of occurrence and impact, if any)?
2. The security strategy deployed - what is the current status of the company's security system (infrastructure protection, video surveillance, access control, flow management, human security, etc.)?
3. The company's level of vulnerability, taking into account points 1 and 2.
This exercise should result in an action plan prioritized according to the degree of urgency identified, and the effective implementation of corrective actions.
Purpose
But what does it actually allow? In short, to understand and improve the protection of your business - in other words, your employees, infrastructure and assets, information assets and reputation.
Unauthorized intrusion, damage, theft of sensitive equipment and information, assault... this type of incident damages your employees' trust in their employer, generates financial or strategic losses, and damages a company's reputation. An audit does not prevent the risk from occurring, but it does enable you to strengthen your systems to deter, detect and reduce the impact should it do so. Not to mention the fact that a relevant security system enhances the value of your company, reassures your customers, partners and investors, and engages your insurers to cover you.
