Elements of A Well Designed Information Security Policy

Elements of A Well Designed Information Security Policy
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Introduction.
The primary aim of information security policies is to combat threats. It is the threat to information systems that necessitate the design and implementation of such policies. None would exist in the absence of the other. The ever-present impact of threats to information has made it mandatory that there is indeed a design, implementation, and enforcement of the policies formulated. Such policies ensure that everyone within the organization behaves in a particular manner that is in line with the requirements of the policy statements. This paper evaluates the elements of an effective and efficient information system policy. It covers management commitment and the general outline for the formulation of such policies.
Discussion
The first thing that a well-designed information security policy consists of is the objectives or the goals it intends to address. Secondly, it has the strategies that would be taken or implemented so as to achieve these outlined goals. An information system that has a nonexistent or weak security policy would just be patch-up efforts against threats. It is only through a well-designed or drafted set of policies, that all the measures can be condensed and assembled into one efficient system of combating the ever-present threats. This would, in turn, impact positively on the overall business of the organization (Vacca, 2013).
There is also the need to utilize current sets of elements and have a clear training procedure for the staff to the new changes. This is known as security training. Obsolete standards and training materials or guidelines are quite risky, as they can quickly make the management of the organization to have a false belief that they have a functional set of policies (Greene, 2014). It then makes them believe that the organization is running more efficiently than it is. To ensure that they eliminate such a false sense of security, organizations through their management teams need to check and test the policies and procedures periodically. In this manner, they can deal away with those that are outdated and ineffective.
As a primary requirement, an effective security policy should have a breakdown of the duties and responsibilities of each personnel thereof. The stipulation of the roles of each individual and staff or management helps to ensure accountability at all times, as far as security of information is concerned. The policy, therefore, needs to specify the type of information that can be accessed by what type or level of personnel. Assigning of security clearance levels is an important aspect of an effective policy (Bayuk, 2009).
Such a policy should also have procedures on incident handling as well as response. In other terms, it needs to have the procedures to follow in the case of a security breach in the organization's systems. This ensures that there is an alternative or fallback option during such emergencies (Bayuk, 2009).
It should also have a clear outline of the nature of physical security. For instance, the policy should dictate the methods in which individual buildings, or parts of the building, or safety procedures like card readers, are to be handled. It also dictates how other security aspects such as passwords, firewalls, antivirus, and accessibility, should be managed (DuBrock, 2009).
To remain updated, they can use the other option of sunsetting. This is the closing or shutting down of redundant operations and procedures in business, or simply phasing out some procedures. This can be done by just setting a fixed time limit of operation for each pr...