How to Secure Your OneTrust for ISO 27701 and Earn the ISO 27701 Compliance Badge

Securing your OneTrust platform for ISO 27701 privacy certification — and demonstrating compliance with the ISO 27701 badge/seal — means aligning your privacy management tool with the strictest international standards for data privacy and security. Here’s how to make sure your environment is ready, what auditors look for, and tips for passing your ISO 27701 audit with confidence.

• Understand What ISO 27701 Is
  ISO 27701 is an international standard built on ISO 27001 (for information security) but focused specifically on Privacy Information Management (PIMS). It shows customers your organization takes privacy and data protection seriously, especially under laws like GDPR and CCPA.
• Core Requirements for ISO 27701
  To meet ISO 27701, you must:
  • Have a solid ISO 27001 (information security) foundation. If you’re not ISO 27001 certified, that comes first.
  • Document how you collect, process, store, share, and delete personal data using OneTrust or any privacy management tool.
  • Demonstrate you have privacy controls, risk assessments, and clear processes for handling personal and sensitive data.
  • Assign clear privacy roles and responsibilities (e.g. privacy officer, data protection officer).
  • Show ongoing awareness, training, monitoring, and continual improvement around privacy and security.
• How to Secure Your OneTrust for ISO 27701 Certification
  Implement these best practices to secure OneTrust and impress your ISO 27701 auditors:
  • Enable strong authentication (multi-factor authentication) for all admin and user accounts in OneTrust.
  • Restrict access: Only give employees the minimum level of access required for their roles (least privilege principle).
  • Encrypt all data at rest and in transit in OneTrust — ensure data exported or integrated with other systems is also encrypted.
  • Document your OneTrust configurations and link them to ISO 27701 controls — this makes audit preparation much easier.
  • Integrate OneTrust with your organization’s incident response, breach notification, and privacy request workflows.
  • Regularly review and update user permissions and remove access for anyone who doesn’t need it.
  • Monitor audit logs in OneTrust for suspicious or unauthorized activities and respond immediately if found.
  • Document your privacy risk assessments and link those records within OneTrust to data processing activities.
• How to Get the ISO 27701 Badge/Seal
  Here's the typical journey to earn that trusted ISO 27701 badge:
  • Prepare your privacy documentation and OneTrust instance; map each ISO 27701 requirement to your platform controls and policies.
  • Conduct internal audits or readiness assessments. Many organizations partner with OCD Tech for expert consulting and to run ISO 27701 readiness checks.
  • Address any identified gaps — update processes, fix configurations, run additional staff training as needed.
  • Bring in an external ISO-accredited auditor for a formal assessment (your actual ISO 27701 audit).
  • Once you pass, you’ll receive a certificate and may display the ISO 27701 compliance badge/seal (per your certifying body’s guidelines).
• What’s Most Important to Pass the Audit?
  Auditors focus most on:
  • Documentation: Everything must be clearly described — who does what, how, and when, with OneTrust supporting your controls.
  • Access controls: Prove only authorized personnel access sensitive or personal information in OneTrust.
  • Incident response: Show that if something goes wrong, you have fast, clear processes (integrated via OneTrust where possible).
  • Continuous improvement: Auditors love to see you’re reviewing and improving processes, not just running a checklist once a year.
  • Independent reviews or consulting (like that from OCD Tech) show you take compliance and readiness seriously.
• Keeping Compliance After Getting Your ISO 27701 Badge/Seal
  
  • Run regular internal reviews and privacy risk assessments using OneTrust’s PIMS tools.
  • Keep documentation, privacy policies, and training up to date with legal changes and business changes.
  • Partner with expert consultants such as OCD Tech to run periodic readiness checks or to support during surveillance (ongoing) audits.