ISO 27001 A.7.12: cabling, explained for startups

A.7.12 Cabling security

Office power and network cables are protected from damage and tapping. What proves it: how office cabling is protected, and a recent check.

A certification auditor samples cabling layout and protection. A file that usually does the job: a walkthrough checklist confirming network cabling runs in conduit and the patch panel is locked.

This control applies only where you have an office or other premises. A fully remote company can exclude it in its Statement of Applicability, with the reason written down.

How to put it in place

Each step leaves a record, and the record is what the auditor samples rather than the step itself. Inside Polara, the control card for A.7.12 walks you through it in this order.

1. Keep network cabling inside walls, ceilings or conduit.
2. Lock patch panels and network closets.
3. Check during your yearly office walkthrough.

No question in the readiness assessment covers A.7.12 directly, so the control card is its whole evidence path.

Policies, connectors and the SOC 2 overlap

In the ISO 27001 policy pack, the Physical and Environmental Security Policy covers A.7.12. An auditor reads the policy for the rule, then samples the records to see the rule was followed.

The same evidence counts toward SOC 2. The Trust Services criterion that cover this ground: CC6.4, physical access.

Physical controls

A.7.12 is one of the 14 physical controls in Annex A. Buildings, rooms, equipment and media. A remote company with no office can exclude several of these in its Statement of Applicability, with the reason written down, and covers the rest through laptop rules and its cloud provider.

Nearby controls in the same theme:

• A.7.9, devices off site
• A.7.10, storage media
• A.7.11, power and utilities
• A.7.13, equipment maintenance
• A.7.14, disposing of equipment

Before it: A.7.11, power and utilities. After it: A.7.13, equipment maintenance. Every control, by theme, is on the Annex A controls page.