It’s not uncommon, at the end of a Cyber Audit Cycle, for organisations to be hit with below than expected audit outcomes and maturity levels. At that point, the audit's outcome is locked in, and there is no possible recourse.
This isn’t a good situation for an organisation to be in. A poor cyber audit outcome can have several negative consequences for organisations, including financial penalties, higher operational costs, compromise of confidentiality, integrity and availability of critical assets, and a loss of trust and reputation from clients and the public.
That’s why, when it comes to Cyber security compliance audits, the heavy lifting should not be left to the end.
This can all be avoided with a more proactive approach. In most situations, a timely mock audit can help in identifying shortcomings that, when addressed, can substantially improve an audit outcome.
The mock audit is much like an actual audit, whereby the applied methodologies, standards and recommendations reflect the actual audit. Therefore, it unfurls the enigma of a review by identifying compliance gaps and areas requiring improvement and suggesting corrective actions you need to take to succeed in the audit.
This type of proactive planning has many benefits, such as:
All these benefits enable you to avoid costly fines and penalties, while enhancing stakeholders' trust and reputation in your organisation.
A mock audit is particularly valuable if your organisation has never been examined, as there may be significant gaps and deficiencies that have not been discovered yet. Even if your organisation has already been examined, a mock audit is worth considering as there may have been significant changes in your business, such as new services or other internal and external rules and regulations, since your last audit.
An independent, competent, and qualified third-party consultant will bring a fresh perspective and assist in identifying gaps you might not even know existed.
Centium is an agile management consulting firm that specialises in minimising risk for government organisations. A large part of that is providing independent IT and Cyber Security services that add value and mitigate risks.
We specialise in audit services and can undertake a Cyber Security Mock Audit against your cyber security requirements, such as the NSW Cyber Security Policy, the ACSC Essential 8, NIST, PCI DSS, SOC1/ISAE3402, SOC2 or ISO27001. We can also follow up with a (cost-effective) formal audit within the defined timelines, ensuring higher audit compliance ratings along with significant time and cost savings.
For more information about how this approach can add value to your Organisations' Cyber security efforts, please contact our Director, Cyber & IT, for a no-obligation discussion on 0412 562 797 or scott.thomson@centium.com.au. Alternatively, browse Centium's range of Cyber & IM services.
If you're a government or not-for-profit organisation that has an interest in our services, you can reach out to us at info@centium.com.au to discuss your needs, or to find out more about how our alliance could benefit you.
Our Clients
