ISO 27001:2022 Annex A 7.2 Physical entry

In this guide, I will show you exactly how to implement ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 and ensure you pass your audit. You will get a complete walkthrough of the control, practical implementation examples, and access to the ISO 27001 templates and toolkit that make compliance easy.

I am Stuart Barker, an ISO 27001 Lead Auditor with over 30 years of experience conducting hundreds of audits. I will cut through the jargon to show you exactly what changed in the 2022 update and provide you with plain-English advice to get you certified.

Key Takeaways: ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 requires organizations to secure entry points to buildings and facilities to ensure only authorized personnel have access. While Annex A 7.1 establishes the “boundary,” this control focuses on the management of people crossing that boundary. The goal is to prevent unauthorized physical access that could lead to the theft or compromise of information assets.

Core requirements for compliance include:

• Authentication of Entry: All entry points (doors, gates, loading bays) must be secured. Access should be verified using technical controls such as RFID badge readers, biometric scanners, or traditional physical keys.
• Visitor Management: You must have a formal process for handling guests. This includes authenticating their identity (ID checks), issuing temporary badges, and ensuring they are escorted by a host at all times.
• Access Logs: Every entry and exit should be recorded. This can be a digital log from an access control system or a physical visitor sign-in book. These logs must be periodically reviewed for anomalies.
• Delivery & Loading Zones: High-risk entry points like loading docks must be isolated from internal IT facilities and restricted to authorized delivery personnel only.
• Tailgating Prevention: You must implement measures to prevent “tailgating” (someone following an authorized person through a door). This can be technical (turnstiles) or behavioral (staff training and awareness).

Audit Focus: Auditors will look for “The Entry Audit Trail”:

1. The Badge Test: An auditor may try to walk through a door behind an employee to see if they are challenged.
2. Visitor Records: “Show me the visitor log for last Tuesday. Did the visitor return their badge and sign out?”
3. The “Forgot My Pass” Protocol: “What happens if an employee forgets their badge? Show me the secondary verification process.”

Visitor Entry Checklist (Audit Cheat Sheet):

Step	Action	Required Evidence
Arrival	Verify visitor identity.	Government Photo ID check.
Sign-In	Record name, host, and time.	Digital Logbook or Sign-in Sheet.
Badge Issue	Provide visible identification.	Color-coded “Visitor” lanyard.
Escort	Handover to employee host.	Host must collect from Reception.
Departure	Retrieve badge & sign-out.	Timestamped exit record.

What is ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2?

The focus for this ISO 27001 Control is about protecting secure areas with access controls and entry points. As one of the ISO 27001 controls this is about keeping unauthorised people out of secure areas.

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry is an ISO 27001 control that requires an organisation to protect secure areas with access points and entry controls.

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Purpose

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 is a preventive control to ensure only authorised physical access to the organisations information and other associated assets occurs.

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Definition

ISO 27001 defines ISO 27001 Physical Entry as:

Secure areas should be protected by appropriate entry controls and access points.

ISO 27001:2022 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Free Training Video

In the video ISO 27001 Physical Entry Controls Explained – ISO27001:2022 Annex A 7.2 I show you how to implement it and how to pass the audit.

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Explainer Video

In this beginner’s guide to ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry, ISO 27001 Lead Auditor Stuart Barker and his team talk you through what it is, how to implement in and how to pass the audit. Free ISO 27001 training.

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Podcast

In this episode: Lead Auditor Stuart Barker and team do a deep dive into the ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry. The podcast explores what it is, why it is important and the path to compliance.

How to implement ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2

General Guidance

You are going to have to

• consult a legal professional to ensure you operate within the law and regulation
• only allow people you authorise into buildings, sites and physical locations
• implement a process to manage access
• review access on a regular basis
• keep a log of access

ISO 27001 Physical Entry Checklist

There are considerations that may be appropriate

• consider a reception area that is monitored
• consider, if appropriate, searching people
• take into account shared access with other organisations
• have identification for staff and visitors
• secure entry points such emergency access in a way that is legal and safe
• the possibility of different technologies such as bio metrics
• having a process for the management of physical keys

The implementation of physical entry is in the context of the physical security perimeter where you can find guidance in the Ultimate guide to ISO 27001 Annex A 7.1 Physical Security Perimeter.

Health and Safety

Your number one priority is to meet the requirements of law and regulation. Be sure to engage with a legal professional to understand what you can and cannot do and to check that you are not breaking any laws. The most significant laws are those around health and safety as the protection of human life and wellbeing is always our number priority. There are common things that should be considered such as entry point doors that fail open. Whilst we want to protect buildings and information our absolute priority is to protect people.

Define your access control requirements

Start by understanding your risk and doing a risk assessment. For guidance on how, read The Complete Guide to ISO 27001 Risk Assessment. This is going to be based on the needs of the business and the risks that you are managing. As a starting point there are basics such as having locks on doors but you can asses the strength of those locks and if other additional controls such as bio metrics or gates are required. Do what is right for you. Consider the environment around the location and the threats that may be posed and be sensible in addressing them.

Implement the access process

You will define, write, sign off and implement the access process based on risk and need. The process will take into account how you grant access, how you change access, how you revoke access and how you review access.

The review of access will be done regularly and you will set what is meant by regularly. A good rule of thumb would be monthly but there are many factors that influence how often you perform reviews. Those factors include:

• how fast the personnel changes
• the sensitivity of the site being accessed
• the risk to business
• the needs of business
• past information security events

Your access process will include keeping, and keeping securely, a log of visitors. Some people use a log book, or digital records. Take into account here data protection laws and the length of time that you keep the information.

Topic specific physical and environmental security policy

To communicate to people what you do and what is expected you are going to write, sign off, implement and communicate your topic specific Physical and Environmental Security Policy.

Reception Areas

The standard is not saying that you must have a reception but that it can be considered. Be sensible when assessing this. If is appropriate then you can implement. It is not a requirement to have personnel to be deployed on reception but having it monitored by personnel would make sense. This could be done remotely rather than having someone sat there full time.

Visitors

The guidelines to review and consider for visitors

• how to authenticate the identity of visitors
• recording when people go in and out
• supervising visitors or giving them explicit permission to roam alone

Visitor Badges

A great physical control is the use of identification for staff and visitors. A visitor badge or way that a visitor can be identified can quickly identify is someone is somewhere they should not be. Proportionate to your organisation.

Alarms and Monitors

When looking at alarms and monitors you are looking at a preventive control to alert you when something has occurred. We all know what alarms are and getting alarms fitted is a very good idea. You want to define your response process and make sure that contacts of who is informed is up to date. Who is getting that call at 2am in the morning and what are they going to do when they get it?

Physical Keys

If you have and need physical keys then you will need a process to manage them. Ensuring that they are allocated to the correct people and you account for if those people are not available or leave. This also applies to other required authentication tokens and passcodes such as combination locks. Some way to perform and annual audit and the use of a log book or similar.

CCTV

You can consider the use of CCTV but be aware that comes with some additional overheads with laws on data protection and the likes of GDPR. You should seek some legal advice before installing CCTV and be sure to do it in a way that is compliant if it is something that you do want to do. There are considerations such as how, how long, where, in what format you store the recordings. Then how do you get access to it, who can get access to it and how do you destroy it. It is not as simple as just banging up a Ring camera.

Secure Areas

The standard gives the guidance that a secure area can be an office that is locked or some internal area that has an internal security barrier. It takes into account that your physical locations maybe internal sub divided based on protection requirements. Usually this is implemented when you have a file room, an archive room, or a room where you store old IT equipment. On premises data centres and data rooms fall into this category as well but in this day and age they are few and far between with most people adopting a cloud based strategy.

Visitor Entry Checklist

Step	Action	Responsibility
1. Arrival	Visitor signs into the Digital Logbook (Time In).	Reception
2. ID Check	Verify photo ID (Driver’s License / Passport).	Reception
3. Badge Issue	Issue “Visitor” lanyard (red/orange).	Reception
4. Escort	Host collects visitor (Never leave unescorted).	Host Employee
5. Departure	Return badge & Sign out (Time Out).	Reception

ISO 27001 Physical Entry Template

For ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry you need a topic specific Physical and Environmental Security Policy Template.

How to pass the ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 audit

To comply with ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 you are going to:

• Define your physical access requirements
• Define your internal sub zone physical perimeter requirements
• Consult with a legal professional to ensure you are meeting legal and regulatory requirements
• Implement your physical security access
• Write, sign off, implement and communicate your topic specific Physical and Environmental Security Policy
• Write, sign off, implement and communicate your perimeter incident response procedures
• Implement a process of internal audit that checks that the appropriate controls are in place and effective and where they are not follow the continual improvement process to address the risks

What the auditor will check

The audit is going to check a number of areas of ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2. Lets go through them

1. That you have a physical entry control

One of the easier things for an auditor to check is the physical entry controls as it is usually the first thing they will encounter when they come to audit you if you have a physical location. For all the physical locations in scope they are going to visit and check.

2. The strength of the physical security access

They have been doing this a long time and done many audits so they know what to look for. They will test the controls and see what happens. They will try to open doors, open cupboards, gain access to areas they should not.

3. Documentation

They are going to look at audit trails and all your documentation. They will look at appropriate access reviews, logs of monitors and reports, incidents and how you managed them.

Top 3 ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 mistakes and how to avoid them

The top 3 mistakes people make for ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Physical Entry are

1. Your physical security perimeter is turned off

What do I mean by turned off? In simple terms it means that you have a lockable door that should be locked and it not locked. You have a fire door that should be closed and locked but you have propped it open because it is a hot day.

2. One or more members of your team haven’t done what they should have done

Prior to the audit check that all members of the team have done what they should have. Have access reviews taken place? Who gets informed about about the alarm and do they still work here?

3. Your document and version control is wrong

Keeping your document version control up to date, making sure that version numbers match where used, having a review evidenced in the last 12 months, having documents that have no comments in are all good practices.

Fast Track Compliance with the ISO 27001 Toolkit

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For ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 (Physical entry), the requirement is to protect secure areas with appropriate entry controls and access points. This is a common-sense physical security control that focuses on real-world access: reception areas, visitor logs, and physical keys.

While SaaS compliance platforms often try to sell you “automated visitor tracking” or complex site management modules, they cannot actually verify a photo ID at your front desk or ensure a visitor is escorted, they are merely a place to host your documentation. The High Table ISO 27001 Toolkit is the logical choice because it provides the governance layer that defines these rules, allowing you to manage physical entry effectively without a recurring subscription fee.

1. Ownership: You Own Your Physical Entry Policy Forever

SaaS platforms act as a middleman for your compliance evidence. If you define your visitor rules and store your digital logbooks inside their proprietary system, you are essentially renting your own security standards.

• The Toolkit Advantage: You receive the Physical and Environmental Security Policy in a fully editable Word format. This document is yours forever. You maintain permanent ownership of your standards (such as badge requirements and ID verification steps), ensuring you are always ready for an audit without an ongoing “rental” fee.

2. Simplicity: Governance for Real-World Access

Annex A 7.2 is about controlling who enters your building. You don’t need a complex new software interface to manage what your receptionists or facilities team already do (or should be doing).

• The Toolkit Advantage: Your team already knows they shouldn’t let strangers wander around. What they need is the governance layer to prove to an auditor that these actions are formal, consistent, and documented. The Toolkit provides pre-written policies and “Visitor Entry Checklists” that formalize your existing office work into an auditor-ready framework, without forcing your team to learn a new software platform.

3. Cost: A One-Off Fee vs. The “Physical Facility” Tax

Many compliance SaaS platforms charge more based on the number of “physical locations” or “entry points” you track. For a control that applies to every door and visitor in your office, these monthly costs can scale aggressively.

• The Toolkit Advantage: You pay a single, one-off fee for the entire toolkit. Whether you have one small office or a global network of facilities, the cost of your Physical Entry Documentation remains the same. You save your budget for actual physical protections (like visitor badges or biometric locks) rather than an expensive compliance dashboard.

4. Freedom: No Vendor Lock-In for Your Facility Strategy

SaaS tools often mandate specific ways to report on and monitor physical entry. If their system doesn’t match your unique office layout or specialized industrial environment, the tool becomes a bottleneck.

• The Toolkit Advantage: The High Table Toolkit is 100% technology-agnostic and fully editable. You can tailor the Entry Procedures to match exactly how you operate, whether you have a manned reception or a self-service digital logbook. You maintain total freedom to evolve your physical workspace without being constrained by the technical limitations of a rented SaaS platform.

Summary: For Annex A 7.2, the auditor wants to see that you have a formal policy for physical entry and proof that you follow it (e.g., visitor logs and ID checks). The High Table ISO 27001 Toolkit provides the governance framework to satisfy this requirement immediately. It is the most direct, cost-effective way to achieve compliance using permanent documentation that you own and control.

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 FAQ

Related ISO 27001 Controls

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.3 Securing Offices, Rooms And Facilities

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.6 Working In Secure Areas

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.5 Protecting Against Physical and Environmental Threats

Further Reading

ISO 27001 Physical Asset Register Beginner’s Guide

ISO 27001 Annex A 7.2 Attribute Table

Control type	Information security properties	Cybersecurity concepts	Operational capabilities	Security domains
Preventive	Confidentiality Integrity Availability	Protect	Physical security Identity and Access Management	Protection

About the author

Stuart Barker is a veteran practitioner with over 30 years of experience in systems security and risk management.

Holding an MSc in Software and Systems Security, Stuart combines academic rigor with extensive operational experience. His background includes over a decade leading Data Governance for General Electric (GE) across Europe, as well as founding and exiting a successful cyber security consultancy.

As a qualified ISO 27001 Lead Auditor and Lead Implementer, Stuart possesses distinct insight into the specific evidence standards required by certification bodies. He has successfully guided hundreds of organizations – from high-growth technology startups to enterprise financial institutions – through the audit lifecycle.

His toolkits represents the distillation of that field experience into a standardised framework. They move beyond theoretical compliance, providing a pragmatic, auditor-verified methodology designed to satisfy ISO/IEC 27001:2022 while minimising operational friction.