As a property developer, you have a lot of information you need to keep private. What you’re planning, which sites your assessing, how much you're bidding – that sort of thing.
If a competitor gained access to this information, it could threaten the very survival of your business. That makes your data security hugely important. Not just internally, but for the online platforms you use too.
We take your data security incredibly seriously. Always have, always will and we're pleased to announce we’ve been granted ISO 27001 certification.
So… what is ISO 27001?
ISO is the International Organisation for Standardisation. They set benchmarks that companies can work to meet and receive recognition for.
Certification with ISO standards is a badge of honour. It demonstrates that the certified companies are going above and beyond the norm around a particular area.
In the case of ISO 27001, that area is information security. And it’s a standard that the very best companies hold themselves to – companies like Google and Amazon.
So us being certified is great for you.
Here’s why:
5 reasons certification is important for you
1) You know your data is secure
ISO certification is one of the most widely-recognised security standards in the world.
These aren’t just legal minimums we’re talking about – things like GDPR compliance and UK data protection laws. These requirements go well beyond that.
To get certified, businesses need to categorically (and continuously) demonstrate that they put customer information security first.
That means instead of just making your data as safe as it has to be, we’re making it as safe as it can be.
To do that, we assess risks that could happen, consider how likely they are, and have a plan in place for what we’d do if they ever occur. Things like:
- Automated multi-region backups – critical systems are saved across multiple sites (so we can automatically redirect to another server if one region has an outage)
- Pen testing – actively working with data security professionals to look for any potential security issues and fixing them before they’re ever a problem
- In-transit data encryption – we encrypt all data sent so even if someone could somehow get hold of it, it’s useless to them
ISO 27001 is an incredibly high standard. And it’s one that we’re super happy to be meeting for you.
2) It’s not just software – it’s everything
Of course, there's a strong technical aspect to this certification. But ISO certification is about much more than just the tech side of things.
An ISO audit looks at everything, from things like how we mitigate the risk of device theft (24-hour onsite security, strong password-protection protocols, device encryption and the ability to remotely wipe them), to even the least techy aspects, like how we store and dispose of paperwork.
It’s so strict, it even looks at the services we use, like hosting, to make sure they’re secure and compliant too.
It covers the tech, the people, the processes – every part of the business – to make sure everyone is doing the right things in the right way.
It’s comprehensive. But it’s worth it.
3) And it’s constantly improving to protect against new threats
ISO certification isn’t a one-time thing – it’s ongoing.
Certification requires an annual audit, then in-depth reassessment every three years. And one of the things they reassess is further progress since last time.
See, if people get certified then sit on their hands for three years, they’re unlikely to get certified again. Sure, they could be just as secure as they were before, but they haven’t demonstrated a real commitment to improving security.
Considering how quickly the security landscape can change and how often new threats emerge, not doing everything you can to keep improving simply means being vulnerable.
But if organisations are proactively striving to improve, adding the latest measures and processes, to make sure they keep getting better and better? Then they’re likely to stay certified indefinitely.
We’ve always been in the latter group. And now we can prove it.
4) It’s good to go – no updates required
Just as importantly, this is something we’re doing for you. That means it doesn’t require any effort on your part.
No software updates. Nothing at your end.
Just keep doing what you’re doing, safe in the knowledge that it’s secure.
5) We're the only UK site-sourcing platform with certification
Getting ISO certification isn’t easy. It takes a lot of effort and expertise to make it happen, so many companies don’t bother.
But we’re not like most other PropTech companies.
We know that your data is the lifeblood of your business. And we want to put the same time, money, and effort into keeping your data secure as you do.
You deserve nothing less.
Security, and then some
Property developers know that their data isn’t just valuable to their business – their data is their business. Anything that puts that data at risk is too big a gamble to take.
ISO 27001 certification demonstrates that we handle your data in the most secure way. Our commitment to security is a hugely important part of who we are. In fact, there are a few things that make us special.