Overview
ISO/IEC TR 3445:2022 - Information technology - Cloud computing - Audit of cloud services - is a technical report that surveys the practices, roles and approaches for auditing cloud services. It builds on the cloud auditor role defined in ISO/IEC 17789 and ISO/IEC 22123, and is applicable to all types and sizes of organizations that plan or perform internal or external audits related to cloud services. The document is an overview resource - it describes audit scope, objectives, approaches and examples of frameworks rather than prescribing certification controls.
Key topics and technical coverage
The report organizes material into practical themes relevant to cloud audit programs, including:
- Roles and responsibilities: interaction models between Cloud Service Customers (CSC), Cloud Service Providers (CSP) and Cloud Service Networks (CSN), and the responsibilities of the cloud auditor.
- Audit objectives and boundaries: defining scope, objectives and the relationship between audits, assessments, assurance and conformity assessment.
- Types of audit: internal vs external audits, exemplary tests, and links between audit and assessment processes.
- Audit specifications and challenges: establishing audit scope, audit risk assessment, security controls assessment, legal and regulatory requirements, policies (including geolocation/data residency), and cloud service agreements (CSA).
- Cloud characteristics affecting audits: multi-tenancy, cloud-native and emerging technologies, change and patch management, availability and auditability concerns.
- Audit processes and data flows: identifying, analysing and evaluating risks; lifecycle considerations for confidentiality, integrity and availability (CIA).
- Automation: opportunities for automating audit and assessment activities.
- Standards and frameworks: an annexed compilation of sample standards, frameworks and auditing programs relevant to cloud security, certification and authorization.
Practical applications - who uses it
ISO/IEC TR 3445:2022 is useful for:
- IT auditors and cloud auditors designing and executing cloud audits.
- Security, compliance and risk teams in CSPs and CSCs preparing for audits or assessing cloud governance.
- Cloud architects and operations teams addressing auditability, logging, change control and multi-tenant risks.
- Procurement and legal teams negotiating cloud service agreements and evidence requirements.
- Conformity assessment bodies and organizations mapping existing frameworks for cloud-specific audit schemes.
Related standards
- ISO/IEC 17789 - Cloud computing roles and architecture
- ISO/IEC 22123 - Cloud computing vocabulary and cloud auditor role
- Annexes in TR 3445 list other relevant standards/frameworks and certification schemes for reference.
This resource helps organizations understand practical audit considerations, plan audit scopes and select appropriate frameworks when assessing cloud services, improving trust and assurance in cloud deployments. Keywords: cloud audit, cloud services audit, ISO/IEC TR 3445:2022, cloud auditor, CSP, CSC, audit frameworks, cloud governance.