Introduction

Policies and standards are only as strong as the commitment to follow them.
Too often, companies invest time creating detailed information security policies only to see employees bypass them for convenience, or managers ignore them under business pressure.

ISO 27001 Control 5.26 Compliance with Policies, Rules and Standards for Information Security ensures that the rules you set are understood, enforced, and embedded in daily operations.

Why This Control Exists

It’s not enough to have a binder full of security policies sitting on a shelf.
Organizations need a culture where:

• Employees know the rules

• Management enforces the rules

• Violations are detected and addressed

This control, defined in ISO/IEC 27002:2022, Section 5.26, is an Organizational control that works as both preventive (ensuring people don’t break the rules) and detective (catching violations when they occur).

It protects the core security principles Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability through the concepts of Protect and Detect, strengthening operational capabilities in policy enforcement and compliance monitoring.

What This Control Looks Like in Practice

1) Communicate Clearly

• Make policies accessible and easy to understand
• Use training sessions, intranet portals, and awareness campaigns

2) Monitor Compliance

• Conduct spot checks, technical monitoring, and internal audits

3) Enforce Fairly

• Apply consequences consistently when rules are broken
• Escalate major violations according to HR or legal processes

4) Support Employees

• Provide secure tools that make compliance easy
• Avoid policies that are unrealistic or block productivity

Common Challenges

• Policy Overload: Too many rules, too little clarity
• Shadow IT: Employees bypass controls to “get work done faster”
• Inconsistent Enforcement: Some teams follow the rules, others ignore them
• No Feedback Loop: Employees don’t know why a policy exists, so they don’t value it

Canadian Cyber’s Take

At Canadian Cyber, we often see organizations with strong policies on paper but weak enforcement in reality.
We help companies bridge that gap by building practical governance frameworks, implementing monitoring systems, and aligning enforcement with organizational culture.

Because at the end of the day, policies don’t protect your business people following them do.

Takeaway

Compliance with policies isn’t about being strict for the sake of it.
It’s about ensuring that the standards you’ve set actually translate into secure day-to-day practices.

How Canadian Cyber Can Help

At Canadian Cyber, we provide:

* ISO 27001 Internal Audit Services to give you a fresh perspective on your ISMS
* Compliance Readiness Reviews for ISO 27001, SOC 2, and other frameworks
* Practical recommendations to close gaps quickly

We also bring our expertise from delivering SOC 2 consulting for fast-growing startups, where we’ve helped clients navigate gap assessments, implement safeguards, and achieve compliance while staying agile.

👉 Ready to strengthen your ISO 27001 program? Book a free consultation here.

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