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Comparison between ASD Essential 8 and APRA CPS 234


Overview

The ASD Essential 8 and APRA CPS 234 are two sets of security requirements for Australian organizations. The ASD Essential 8 focuses on the prevention, detection and response to cyber threats, while APRA CPS 234 focuses on the protection of customer data. Both sets of requirements aim to improve the security posture of organizations, with the ASD Essential 8 being more comprehensive and prescriptive. The ASD Essential 8 covers areas such as secure configuration, patching, monitoring and logging, while APRA CPS 234 covers areas such as data security, customer authentication, and data governance. Both sets of requirements are important for organizations to consider when developing their security posture.



What is ASD Essential 8?

The ASD Essential 8 is a set of security strategies developed by the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) to help organizations protect their systems from cyber threats. It consists of eight security strategies that should be implemented in order to reduce the risk of a successful cyber attack. These strategies are: application whitelisting, patching applications, patching operating systems, restricting administrative privileges, multi-factor authentication, daily backups, account monitoring, and application control. Each of these strategies is designed to protect an organization's systems from malicious actors and to reduce the risk of a successful cyber attack. The ASD Essential 8 is a comprehensive security strategy that can help organizations protect their systems and data.


What is APRA CPS 234?

APRA CPS 234 is an Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) Cyber Security Standard which applies to all APRA-regulated entities in Australia. It sets out requirements for the management of cyber security risks, including the implementation of appropriate measures to protect information and systems from unauthorised access, use, disclosure, modification or disruption. The standard is based on the internationally recognised cyber security framework, ISO/IEC 27001. The standard applies to all information and systems used by APRA-regulated entities, and requires that they have in place a comprehensive cyber security framework to protect their information and systems. The standard also requires entities to regularly assess their cyber security risk profile and implement appropriate measures to protect their information and systems.


A Comparison Between ASD Essential 8 and APRA CPS 234

1. Both standards aim to protect customer data and information from cyber security threats.

2. Both standards emphasize the importance of risk management and security controls.

3. Both standards require organizations to have a comprehensive security policy and procedures.

4. Both standards require organizations to conduct regular security assessments and reviews.

5. Both standards require organizations to have an incident response plan and procedures.

6. Both standards require organizations to have a secure system and network architecture.

7. Both standards require organizations to have access control and authentication measures.

8. Both standards require organizations to have secure development and testing processes.


The Key Differences Between ASD Essential 8 and APRA CPS 234

1. ASD Essential 8 is focused on cyber security, while APRA CPS 234 is focused on information security.

2. ASD Essential 8 is more comprehensive and covers more areas than APRA CPS 23

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3. ASD Essential 8 is more prescriptive in its approach, while APRA CPS 234 is more flexible.

4. ASD Essential 8 focuses on technical security controls, while APRA CPS 234 focuses on risk management and governance.

5. ASD Essential 8 is mandatory for all Australian government agencies, while APRA CPS 234 is voluntary for financial institutions.

6. ASD Essential 8 has a stronger emphasis on continuous monitoring, while APRA CPS 234 is more focused on periodic reviews.

7. ASD Essential 8 is focused on protecting government systems, while APRA CPS 234 is focused on protecting customer data.

8. ASD Essential 8 is more comprehensive in terms of security requirements, while APRA CPS 234 is more comprehensive in terms of data privacy requirements.