IT Compliance and Cybersecurity: Understanding the Differences

IT compliance and cybersecurity are often used interchangeably, even within the cybersecurity and compliance fields. This is the basis for the completely incorrect and dangerous notion that achieving compliance automatically equals being secure.

While there is some overlap, and the two fields complement each other, IT compliance and cybersecurity are not the same, and being compliant – with HIPAA, FedRAMP, PCI DSS, or any other framework – is not the same thing as being secure.

What is cybersecurity?

Cyber security is the protection of computer hardware, software, systems, networks, and data from cyberattacks. It is a very broad field that encompasses an enterprise’s policies, processes, end user education, and technical controls to address the following areas:

• Application security – securing software and apps
• Information security – securing data, including customer data, employee data, and confidential business information
• Network security – securing the ports and databases within a network
• Operational security – classifying information assets and determining the controls needed to secure them
• Cyber incident management and response

What is IT compliance?

There is much overlap between the goals of IT compliance and cybersecurity, which is the root of the confusion. They both address securing hardware and digital assets. However, unlike cybersecurity requirements, which are developed internally, IT compliance requirements are mandated by a third party, such as the government, an industry regulatory body, or a client.

• Organizations operating in the healthcare industry in the U.S. must comply with HIPAA, a federal law
• Organizations around the world that wish to accept major payment cards must comply with PCI DSS, a set of standards mandated by the major credit card brands
• The U.S. federal government requires organizations that wish to sell cloud services to federal agencies to comply with FedRAMP
• Many private-sector businesses require their cloud services vendors to release an SOC 2 attestation

The takeaway is that enterprises implement cybersecurity controls for their own protection; they undergo IT compliance audits to satisfy a third party.

What are some additional differences between cybersecurity and IT compliance?

While many IT compliance standards, such as FedRAMP and SOC 2, are quite rigorous, they are not meant to provide full cybersecurity protection on their own. There’s no way they could.

• The cybersecurity threat landscape is dynamic; it changes on a daily basis. IT compliance frameworks change very slowly, typically annually or less often.
• Every organization’s data environment and risk profile are different. No IT compliance framework could comprehensively address every possible eventuality at every organization.

Additionally, some IT compliance regulations, such as the GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act, focus more on data privacy (giving individual consumers control over the data enterprises collect from them) than cybersecurity (protecting enterprise assets).

IT compliance complements cybersecurity

With the costs of IT compliance skyrocketing, some enterprises view compliance quite negatively, as a list of line items that must be checked off to conduct business in a certain industry or with certain clients. However, IT compliance complements enterprise cybersecurity and provides numerous benefits.

Compliance with certain standards, such as FedRAMP and SOC 2, is seen as a “gold standard” of data security by companies seeking to purchase cloud services, and compliance with the GDPR is seen by some consumers as a testament to a company’s commitment to data privacy. The process of undergoing a compliance audit also helps companies identify issues with their cybersecurity and data governance that may have otherwise gone undetected. Finally, IT compliance frameworks provide a good starting point for enterprise cybersecurity.

The cybersecurity experts at Continuum GRC have deep knowledge of the cybersecurity field, are continually monitoring the latest information security threats, and are committed to protecting your organization from security breaches. Continuum GRC offers full-service and in-house risk assessment and risk management subscriptions, and we help companies all around the world sustain proactive cybersecurity programs.

Continuum GRC is proactive cybersecurity®. Call 1-888-896-6207 to discuss your organization’s cybersecurity needs and find out how we can help your organization protect its systems and ensure compliance.