Information Assurance vs Information Security

In the world of modern technologies, the security of digital information is an important aspect. Cyber-attacks and theft, exploitation and loss of data are the constant threats these days. To prevent all these, there is a variety of techniques available. But in all other ways, the two most common and used ways are information Assurance and information security. It’s been a widely used method for years and up until now. It’s been used in many private and government sectors and almost in every field that needs to secure data in one way or another.

However, distinguishing between the fields of information assurance and information security, and their definitions and restrictions can be difficult. These two fields have been working hand-in-hand for years, and are the necessary parts of one another. However, these are two distinct domains with distinct work obligations and constraints.

In this article, we will be discussing the key features of the AI, often known as information Assurance and information security. And mainly we will try to understand, how they differ from one another while working together.

 

What is Information Assurance?

IA or information assurance can be called a practice of assuring and managing the risks related to confidential information, throughout the process of transmission, processing, and storing data. Information assurance is mostly focused on the protection of the integrity, availability, authenticity, non-repudiation, and confidentiality of data in the system. It does not only encompass the digital data protection but also included physical techniques.

The main aspect, on which information assurance is mainly focused is, ensuring the performance of the information system as needed while keeping the security accessible to authorized users.

Unlike information security, it’s more focused on a business level and strategic risk management of information. it is more beneficial for businesses through its functions like risk management, trust management, resilience, appropriate architecture, system safety, and security, which increases the utility of information to only their authorized users and reduces. Therefore, in addition to defending against cyber-attacks and viruses, it is also concerned with privacy, regulatory and standards compliance, auditing, business continuity, and disaster recovery.

There are five key focused features in the construction of information assurance, which help protect the system while allowing it to perform services efficiently. It consists of the following characteristics: availability, integrity, authentication, confidentiality, and non-repudiation.

What is Information security?

Information security, on the other hand, is a practice of protecting information by mitigating information risks. Typically, it involves reducing the probability of unauthorized access to data, or illegal use of it. Also, as the disruption, detection, modification, inspection, or recording of confidential information. it includes taking actions to prevent such incidents.
The main focus of information security is providing balanced protection against cyber-attacks and hacking while maintaining confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.

For this purpose, It applies a variety of methods aimed at preventing and defending against system attacks and unauthorized use, such as network security, applications, and data. In the process, the possible dangers are detected, examined, and evaluated to take the right kind of action to prevent them. Another important aspect of information security is to prevent cyber-attacks by utilizing firewalls and other deterrents.

Difference between Information Assurance vs Information Security

Although there are many similarities between information assurance and information security, both aim to protect digital data. Both areas require a secure infrastructure to protect an organization’s confidential information. Advanced protecting technologies, such as cutting-edge firewalls, are required in both fields.

Aside from that, both disciplines face the same difficulty too, which is the threat of cyber-attacks, hacking, privacy issues, and the strategic defence and recovery of information systems before and after catastrophic events. 

However, these two fields can still be distinguished. Both areas may work hand in hand, yet there are major differences between their workings.

Following is a table of differences:

Briefly, information assurance is a field that is more concerned with preventing the overall risk to a company’s information caused by cyber threats. Information assurance often entails the application of organizational-wide standards to reduce threats to information security. The information specialist may attain this by redesigning login authentication mechanisms or performing routine backups of critical company data.

On the other hand, information security is more focused on developing tools, technologies, and other measures to secure information, particularly from external attacks. The main focus of Information security is on securing data from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction so that it can provide integrity, confidentiality, and availability. 

To understand it more clearly, In the integrity aspect includes guarding against inappropriate modification or destruction and ensuring the non-repudiation and authenticity of data.

The confidentiality aspect means, maintaining authorized access and disclosure limits, as well as safeguarding Personal Privacy and confidential information.

Availability, on the other hand, ensures reliable access to information at the appropriate time. 

Information security is achieved through the use of security solutions, encryption, and other technology, as well as policies and processes. Information security can be considered a sub-discipline of information assurance. Where both fields aim to maintain the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of information. information protection focuses on doing so through information security, whereas information assurance ensures the quality, dependability, and retrievability of data in addition to keeping it safe.

On the other side, Information assurance can be defined as a measure that protects and defends the information and information systems by ensuring their availability, integrity, authenticity, confidentiality, and non-repudiation. These measures include providing for the restoration of information systems by incorporating protection, detection, and reaction capabilities.

Difference Between The Functioning of Both

Even though both areas are concerned with the security and protection of digital information, still, there is a significant variation in how they operate. While both serve the same objective, they are two distinct fields with distinct functions.

As for the working of Information security, it is a process, which reduces or eliminates the threats using secure systems and design, IP addresses, procedures, and technology to develop a viable approach for removing security flaws that could be used to obtain unwanted access, compromise, or steal data. Vulnerability management, penetration testing, and technology solutions such as firewalls, anti-virus, data loss prevention, and encryption may all be part of it.

Whereas, Information assurance is more focused on organizational risk management and overall information quality as a means of better controlling and safeguarding the important data. Information assurance is a typical strategy that is used to perform a variety of data security and management procedures. For instance, Security audits, network architecture, compliance audits, database administration, implementation, and enforcement of organizational information management policies.

Advantages of Information Assurance and Information Security 

There are several advantages to information security and information assurance; however, there are a few major advantages listed below that should not be overlooked:

Advantages related to information security:

• It provides security to all confidential information: An information security provides security to all the information that needed to be protected, whether, it’s an intangible asset, organizational secrets, or Personal information. it makes no difference, whether it is in physical or digital form. 
• Serves against cyber-attacks and threats: the information security safeguards against cyber-attacks and hacking threats. it increases the resilience of the organization against cyber-attacks.
• It reduces the unnecessary costs regarding security:  A risk assessment and analysis method of information security is a reliable and cost-effective method, which, as a result, allows the organizations to save money instead of investing it in putting layers on layers of defensive technologies, which may not be proved as effective. 
• Ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information: Information security is a method that uses a set of policies, as well as technical and physical controls, to help safeguard an organization’s confidential data, while ensuring its integrity and availability of it.

Advantages related to information assurance

• Enhances the data protection: the first and most important benefit that information assurance provides is the protection of the confidential data of an organization. It helps enhance the protection of the company data to keep it safe from all sorts of threats.
• Reduces the overall risk of cyber attacking: Information assurance is a method that is more concerned with the overall risk of the company’s data being lost or stealthy. It typically involves implementing organizational-wide standards to mitigate vulnerabilities to information security.
• Risk management: The key aspect of information assurance is that it works closely with risk management techniques, which means that it can determine when and how to take action to reduce risk.
• Ensures the Quality, Dependability, and Retrievability; The purpose of information assurance is to ensure the quality, dependability, and retrievability of data so that it can be easily reachable and can be used when needed. while also protecting it. And for this, it employs a variety of approaches and procedures.

So far, we’ve covered the fundamentals of information assurance and security, and many different aspects of it. We have tried to understand how they are separated while working for the same goal. However, it cannot be denied that to maintain the complete security of the data, information security and information assurance both are important aspects and needed to be applied together.