ISO 27001 vendor assessment template

What an ISO 27001 vendor assessment template is

A vendor assessment template is a standardised way to score how securely a supplier handles your data and systems before you sign, and periodically after. It captures the questions you should ask about a vendor's security controls, certification status, incident history, and data-handling practices, and turns the answers into a clear risk rating.

This template is structured so you can assess multiple vendors consistently, compare them side by side, and keep an audit trail of who, what, and when you assessed.

Who needs it

Any SME that works with cloud providers, managed IT, agencies, processors, or other third parties that touch business data. Under ISO 27001's supplier relationship controls, you are responsible for the security of data you hand to vendors, so you need a documented way to check and manage that risk.

It is especially relevant if a customer, insurer, or auditor asks how you manage third-party risk - a documented vendor assessment is the evidence that demonstrates you have a process.

What's included

The template includes a structured vendor questionnaire covering security governance, access and authentication, data protection, incident response, sub-processors, and certification status, plus a rating sheet that converts answers into an overall third-party risk score.

It also includes fields for the vendor name, the service or data in scope, the assessment date, and the recommended action, so your records stay complete and auditable.

Common mistakes companies make without one

The most common mistake is having no documented vendor assessment at all, then discovering a supplier with weak controls has access to customer data. Under the supplier-relationship controls, that is your risk to own.

Another frequent failure is assessing a vendor once at onboarding and never again. Third-party risk changes over time, so a template that supports periodic re-assessment - and records that you did it - keeps you covered.

How it maps to ISO 27001:2022 Annex A controls

Supplier security is covered by several of the 93 Annex A controls in the 2022 revision, most directly in the supplier relationship group (A.5.19 information security in supplier relationships, A.5.20 addressing information security within supplier agreements, A.5.21 managing information security in the ICT supply chain, and A.5.22 monitoring, review and change management of supplier services).

Using this template gives you the documented evidence those controls expect, and it complements your risk register and Statement of Applicability, where the supplier-related controls are justified.

Related template

Complete your ISO 27001 documentation set with the ISO 27001 Risk Assessment Template XLS. The two documents work together, so linking them up saves you time and makes your documentation more coherent.