January 7, 2008—The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published what it says is the first internationally ratified benchmark document addressing incident preparedness and continuity management for organizations in both public and private sectors.
The publicly available specification ISO/PAS 22399:2007, “Societal security—Guideline for incident preparedness and operational continuity management,” is based on best practice from five national standards from Australia, Israel, Japan, the UK, and the US. It includes guidelines for responding to natural disasters, acts of terror, technology-related accidents, and environmental incidents.
ISO/PAS 22399 establishes the process, principles, and terminology of incident preparedness and operational (business) continuity management (IPOCM) within the context of societal security. The standard describes a holistic management process that identifies potential impacts that threaten an organization, and provides a framework for minimizing their effect.
ISO/PAS 22399:2007 costs 120 Swiss francs and is available from ISO national member institutes or online from ISO.
