While security and compliance are interconnected, there are lots of distinctions between them in the realm of data protection and risk management. Security focuses on protecting data, systems, and infrastructure from unauthorised access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction. This encompasses a broad range of measures, including prevention and detection, access control, data encryption, and incident response.

Compliance, on the other hand, involves adhering to relevant laws, regulations, standards, and best practices related to data protection and security. This includes:

1. Regulatory requirements: Meeting the obligations outlined in laws such as GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA.

2. Industry standards: Adhering to standards like PCI-DSS for payment card data and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework.

3 Audits and assessments: Regularly evaluating and reporting on compliance with relevant standards and regulations.

Organisations tend to see security and compliance from a variety of angles.

Some organisations don’t even care about security, and since their sector doesn’t follow any compliance structure, they don’t do anything about it until a breach occurs. A major contributing factor to this is ignorance.

Compliance is what motivates certain businesses’ security initiatives. Such businesses are solely concerned with getting certified during the audit period. Everything continues as usual until the next audit cycle.

While some organisations have some security awareness, they don’t follow any standards. Therefore, security measures are often poorly informed and fall well short of what is needed.

While the last category embraces security practices and also complies with various standards. These organisations have dedicated in-house security teams that ensure that there are no deviations from the standards.

Security and Compliance Interconnectedness

Security and compliance are interdependent and interrelated. Implementing certain security controls is frequently motivated by compliance requirements, and attaining compliance requires effective security measures.

Why Both Are Important

1. Risk Management: Both security and compliance are critical components of a comprehensive risk management strategy.

2. Data Protection: Implementing robust security measures helps protect sensitive data, which is a key compliance requirement.

3. Reputation and Trust: Demonstrating a commitment to both security and compliance can enhance an organization’s reputation and build trust with customers, partners, and stakeholders.

Best Practices for Balancing Security and Compliance

1. Integrate Security and Compliance: Embed security and compliance into the fabric of your organization, rather than treating them as separate silos.

2. Risk-Based Approach: Adopt a risk-based approach to security and compliance, focusing on the most critical assets and vulnerabilities.

3. Continuous Monitoring and Improvement: Regularly assess and improve your security and compliance posture, staying up to date with evolving threats and regulatory requirements.