(Non accredited or referenced on the 27001 certificate as add-on)

ISO/IEC 27018 is an international standard/code of practice that provides guidance for the protection of personally identifiable information (PII) in cloud environments. It belongs to the ISO 27000 family and builds upon ISO/IEC 27002, offering targeted guidance for cloud service providers and cloud customers. 

It applies to public and private organizations, governmental bodies, and NGOs, and is particularly critical for organizations processing PII in IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS environments. Its purpose is to establish clear, auditable practices that reduce the risk of data breaches, strengthen customer trust, and facilitate compliance with GDPR and other international privacy requirements. 

What ISO 27018 Protects and Why It Matters 

ISO 27018 focuses on privacy and the secure processing of PII in the cloud. It sets requirements for: 

  • Access control and data minimization 
  • Transparency toward customers and data subjects 
  • Secure processing, storage, and transfer of PII 
  • Incident management and responsible disclosure 
  • Clear roles and responsibilities between cloud provider and customer

Adopting the standard reduces the risk of breaches, enhances corporate reputation, and serves as a “trust language” in due diligence processes, RFPs, and international collaborations. 

Benefits of ISO 27018 Certification 

  • Customer & market trust: Demonstrates visible commitments to privacy-by-design with measurable and auditable controls. 
  • Regulatory readiness: Facilitates alignment with GDPR and other data protection regulations. 
  • Competitive advantage: Differentiates cloud providers and SaaS companies in international projects. 
  • Effective incident management & disclosure: Establishes structured response and notification processes. 
  • Risk & cost reduction: Prevents data breaches and limits incident impact and cost. 
  • Streamlined operations: Standardizes processes across multiple countries and clients, simplifying global operations. 

Core Principles & Controls of ISO 27018 

The standard is based on ISO/IEC 27002 and extends it for cloud environments, defining specific controls organized around eight privacy principles, including: 

  • Transparency and fair processing (notice, purpose, lawful basis) 
  • Consent and data subject rights (access, rectification, deletion, restriction, portability, objection) 
  • Purpose limitation and data minimization 
  • Integrity and confidentiality (encryption, IAM, segregation) 
  • PII lifecycle protection (collection → storage → disposal) 
  • Third-party/sub-processor governance 
  • Incident management and reporting 
  • Accountability and documentation (auditability, records, evidence) 

ISO 27018 primarily targets organizations acting as PII processors in the cloud but is also useful for controllers assessing their providers. 

Differences Between ISO 27018, ISO 27001 and ISO 27701 

  • ISO/IEC 27001: Management system standard for ISMS – defines the information security governance framework (clauses 4–10, risk-based PDCA). 
  • ISO/IEC 27018: Code of practice specializing in controls for PII protection in cloud environments (especially for processors). 
  • ISO/IEC 27701: Privacy Information Management System (PIMS) – extends ISO 27001 for controllers and processors with privacy-specific controls.

Organizations often implement ISO 27001 as the overarching ISMS, ISO 27018 for cloud-specific PII practices, and ISO 27701 for a comprehensive PIMS. ISO 27701 was developed in response to GDPR requirements and requires an existing or simultaneous ISO 27001 implementation. 

ISO 27018 Certification Process 

Prerequisite: Valid ISO/IEC 27001 certification (or simultaneous 27001 + 27018 certification). 

Typical steps: 

  1. Gap analysis & scoping: Define services, cloud accounts/regions, and PII data flows. 
  1. Risk assessment & controls: Evaluate PII risks and implement ISO 27018 controls. 
  1. Internal audit & management review: Demonstrate effectiveness, KPIs, and corrective actions. 
  1. Certification audit: (Stage 1 – readiness · Stage 2 – implementation and effectiveness)
  1. Certificate issuance and annual surveillance audits; recertification every three years. 

Duration: Typically 2–4 months, depending on size, complexity, and ISMS maturity. 
Cost: Depends on organization size, cloud footprint (accounts/regions/services), PII volume/sensitivity, number of suppliers, and audit scope. 

Practical Implementation – Roadmap & Best Practices 

  • Alignment with ISO 27001: SoA, risk register, and core policies (Access, Crypto, Logging, Supplier). 
  • Encryption & key management: at-rest/in-transit encryption, KMS/HSM, key rotation, segregation of duties. 
  • IAM & least privilege: MFA, short-lived credentials, API key hygiene, Just-In-Time access. 
  • Monitoring & incident response: centralized logging, CSPM/SIEM, cloud-specific runbooks, notification SLAs. 
  • Data lifecycle & retention: classification, minimization, secure disposal and sanitization. 
  • Third-party governance: assessment of processors/sub-processors, SCCs/DTAs where required, recovery testing. 
  • Training & awareness: role-based training (Dev, Sec, Ops, Legal, Support). 
  • Continuous compliance: audits, KPIs, privacy reviews during architectural or operational changes. 

ISO 27018 & Regulatory Frameworks (GDPR, HIPAA, CCPA) 

ISO 27018 supports GDPR compliance, particularly for processors handling PII in public cloud environments. It also maps to sector-specific requirements such as healthcare (HIPAA) and consumer privacy (CCPA/CPRA), providing a neutral international framework of demonstrable practices for multi-jurisdiction environments. 

Use Cases, Sectors & SMEs 

  • Cloud providers/SaaS: Accelerates due diligence and strengthens trust in B2B sales. 
  • Fintech/Payments: Meets heightened requirements for logging, encryption, and monitoring. 
  • Healthcare & e-Health: Protects sensitive data with standardized privacy controls. 
  • SMEs: Gains credibility and access to new markets through proportional implementation without excessive documentation. 

Why Choose Q-CERT for ISO 27018 Certification 

ISO 27018 certification enhances trust, compliance, and competitiveness for organizations processing PII in the cloud. If you are considering adoption, request a scope, audit-day, and cost estimation along with a realistic implementation and certification plan. 

You may contact Q-CERT for ISO 27001/27018 certification to receive clear audit guidance and a value-added approach focused on substance and practical compliance.