Macquarie Telecom is first Australian carrier and hosting provider certified to ISO 27001 international security standard

Sydney, Australia – 3rd April 2007 – Macquarie Telecom is the first Australian telecommunications carrier and hosting provider to be certified by SAI Global to ISO 27001 Information Security Management Systems (ISMS).

The three year certification is a new international standard designed to help businesses with a global presence secure their information assets and boost their defences against costly information security attacks.

ISO 27001 ISMS has been developed in response to recent high profile information security breaches that exposed confidential data including the personal information of millions of credit card users worldwide. The requirements of the standard include 135 controls which cover all aspects of information security from physical access to network device control, password management, virus impact mitigation processes and managing security risks.

“The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has had a significant impact on the financial and legal reporting requirements placed on global businesses. Key to compliance with the Act is managing risk associated with the security, reliability and accuracy of a company’s IT systems,” said Aidan Tudehope, Managing Director, Macquarie Hosting.

“ISO 27001 puts in place global benchmarks for securing an organisation’s information assets. For our customers, it provides a level of assurance that hosted databases, networks and operating systems meet best-practice standards for risk assessment, policy, training, audits, controls, information and communication,” said Tudehope.

ISO 27001 is a rigorous standard to achieve and maintain. In addition to a two-stage certification process, it requires six monthly external audits to ensure ongoing compliance. The senior management at the certified body then need to sign against the level of risk identified in the audit process.

“For our government and enterprise customers, this management control is critical. It acts as an assurance that risks associated with the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information assets have been effectively managed,” added Tudehope.

ISO 27001 is based upon and replaces country specific security standards British Standard BS 7799 and Australia and New Zealand standard AS/NZS 7799. Macquarie Hosting has been accredited to both these standards BS 7799 and AS/NZS 7799.

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About Macquarie Hosting

Macquarie Hosting is a division of ASX-listed Macquarie Telecom, a specialist supplier of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) solutions – including voice, data, mobile and hosting – for the business and government markets.

Macquarie Hosting provides high-availability, fully managed hosting, SAN/NAS storage management, accredited security and comprehensive monitoring and management for organisations with mission critical website and online transaction requirements. Its customers include Fairfax Business Media, Haymarket Media, NineMSN, Showbiz.com.au, WebJet.

Its dedicated managed hosting and security facility, the Intellicentre, is certified to the highest local and international security standards including ISO 27001 and DSD Gateway. This helps organisations confidently address security concerns associated with corporate governance, privacy regulations and audit requirements such as Sarbanes-Oxley.