What Is COBIT?

COBIT (Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies) is a globally recognized set of controls for information technology. The framework was created by ISACA (Previously known as the Information Systems Audit and Control Association) to help businesses develop and implement strategies around information technology management and governance.

So, what does that mean exactly? Basically, COBIT provides your organization guidance on making decisions regarding the use of information technology to support and maintain your business objectives. Sometimes it’s best to trust the experts, so anything you’re not compliant with should raise some red flags and let you know what your team should take a closer look at. Any changes you decide to make are up to you since COBIT is not required, but it’s in your best interest to at least review any suggestions.

Who Does COBIT Apply to?

You! Well, probably. Not all COBIT methodology will be relevant to everyone, but at least part of their content usually ends up in our customers’ assessments. COBIT is helpful if you want to gain trust from your partners or customers, need guidance on IT processes, or simply need to better understand IT-related goals, objectives, and results. If that sounds beneficial to you, it’s worth taking a look at.

How to Check Compliance

COBIT offers content that calculates your overall compliance. You can either use their platform, or use another service that has purchased their content and analyzes it for you. As an example, we take all of the content from COBIT and our experts formulate easy-to-answer questions that can be used in a survey format. These questions cpntain “Has the 3-5 year strategic plan been broken down into 1 year tactical plans that drive towards strategic goals?” and “Has a methodology been adopted for enterprise architecture?”

Upon completion of your survey, or other means of data gathering, you’ll easily understand if your organization is COBIT compliant. If not, you can review your data to determine what areas need immediate remediation and what tasks can be scheduled in the future.

COBIT Progress

Technology continues to change and advance, so it only makes sense that your frameworks follow suit. Rest Assured, COBIT has done a great job of maintaining relevance, contributing to its global recognition. According to ISACA, COBIT 5 “Consolidates and integrates the COBIT 4.1, Val IT 2.0 and Risk IT frameworks and also draws significantly from the Business Model for Information Security (BMIS) and ITAF.”

The most recent model, COBIT 2019, continues this constant change by adding in the latest developments that affect enterprise information and technology.

Try out a demo of CyberWatch and select COBIT on your form. That’s a free 30 days to explore how you can benefit from using the COBIT framework in your organization. You’re welcome!