A security compliance gap assessment is a process used by organizations to identify discrepancies or gaps between their current security practices and the requirements of a specific set of security standards or regulations. The goal of this assessment is to evaluate the organization’s adherence to established security controls, policies, and procedures and to identify areas where they may fall short in meeting the required security compliance standards.

By conducting a security compliance gap assessment, organizations can proactively identify and address potential security vulnerabilities and compliance issues. This helps them strengthen their overall security posture, reduce the risk of security breaches or regulatory penalties, and demonstrate their commitment to maintaining a secure environment for their operations and stakeholders.

High Level Process Steps

  • Identify Relevant Standards or Regulations – Organizations need to determine which security standards, regulations, or frameworks are applicable to their industry, jurisdiction, or specific business requirements. Examples include ISO 27001, NIST Cybersecurity Framework, HIPAA, GDPR, etc.

  • Assessment Framework – The organization defines an assessment framework based on the chosen standards. This framework outlines the security controls, policies, and practices that need to be evaluated.

  • Assessment Process – The organization evaluates its current security measures, practices, policies, and procedures against the defined framework. This often involves conducting interviews, reviewing documentation, inspecting technical implementations, and performing vulnerability assessments.

  • Identify Gaps – As the assessment progresses, any areas where the organization’s current practices deviate from the requirements of the chosen standards are identified as compliance gaps. These gaps could involve missing security controls, inadequate documentation, improper configurations, or other non-compliant practices.

  • Prioritization and Remediation – Once the gaps are identified, they are typically prioritized based on their severity and potential impact on security compliance. The organization then develops a remediation plan to address each gap. This plan may involve implementing new security controls, revising existing policies, conducting employee training, or making changes to technical systems.

  • Validation and Reassessment – After implementing the remediation plan, the organization validates that the identified gaps have been adequately addressed. This might involve re-evaluating the relevant security controls and procedures. Regular reassessments may also be scheduled to ensure ongoing compliance.

  • Reporting – Throughout the process, detailed reports are generated to document the assessment findings, the identified gaps, and the steps taken for remediation. These reports can be used to demonstrate the organization’s commitment to security compliance and to communicate the status to relevant stakeholders, auditors, or regulatory bodies.