How ADDA Built a Stronger, Safer Home for Your Community’s Data
I’ll be honest.
Most people don’t wake up excited about reading a blog on information security standards. Even my friends think cybersecurity is just me chasing hackers across screens like in movies. If only life were that exciting. Most days are more about policies, processes, and politely reminding everyone that “password123” is not a password.
But this past year has been special for us at ADDA. We completed our ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification journey, and it has been one of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on — not just for our teams, but for every community that trusts ADDA with its data.
This blog is my attempt to take you behind the scenes, without boring you to sleep.
Let’s start at the beginning.
Table of Contents
Why We Took This Path (Even Though It’s Not the Easy One)
ADDA has always been a privacy-first platform. We’ve been around since 2009, and even back when the term “data privacy” wasn’t trending, our founders treated resident data like something sacred. No ads, no selling data, no creepy tracking — just trust.
But as we grew across India, the UAE, the US, Singapore and other regions, we knew gut feelings weren’t enough anymore. Communities wanted assurance. Developers wanted validation. And regulators across the world started asking tougher questions about how companies handle data.
So the leadership team said, “Let’s not just claim we’re secure. Let’s prove it.”
Enter ISO/IEC 27001:2022 — the global gold standard for information security.
And yes, it is exactly as complex as it sounds.
Step 1: Understanding Where We Really Stand
You know that moment before starting a home renovation, when you look around and think,
“This is going to take more effort than I thought…”
That was us.
We began with a deep internal assessment. Not the kind where you glance at a few checklists and call it a day. This was more like turning the house upside down to see what falls out.
We reviewed:
- How data flows across modules like Billing, Gate Security, Facility Management and Payments,
- Who has access to what inside the company,
- How we store logs and backups,
- How quickly we can recover from disasters,
- And whether our existing policies truly protected resident privacy.
There were moments when the team would look at me and ask, “Do we really have to document everything?”
Yes. Yes, we do. ISO has a bias for paperwork, and I respect it.
Step 2: Creating the Framework — Policies, Processes and a Lot of Coffee
Once we knew our starting point, we rolled up our sleeves. The 27001 journey is basically like organising a massive community event. Everyone has different needs, different suggestions, and everyone wants things done yesterday.
We updated or created policies for:
- Access control,
- Encryption standards,
- Vendor risk management,
- Incident response,
- Physical security,
- HR onboarding and offboarding,
- Backup and recovery,
- Change management,
- And a hundred other things I could list but won’t, because I respect your time.
This wasn’t theory.
Every policy had to work in real life. That meant talking to product managers, customer success teams, developers, support teams, even finance. Each group had their own concerns. For example, the finance team just wanted one thing: “Please don’t break the accounting workflows.”
Fair ask.
Step 3: Building What We Call “Everyday Security”
Security is not a one-time event. It’s like fitness. You can’t go to the gym for a week and expect six-pack abs.
So we built habits.
- We started monthly VAPT cycles (vulnerability assessment and penetration testing).
- We introduced secure coding practices, with tools that check for issues while code is being written.
- We refined our disaster recovery drills, making sure we could bring critical systems back without panic.
- We set up stronger identity and access controls, and we created guardrails so no one could accidentally overreach.
Most importantly, we made security everyone’s responsibility — not just the security team’s.
This was the turning point.
- People began reporting suspicious emails.
- Developers caught issues before audits did.
- Product managers asked security questions during feature planning.
Honestly, seeing this shift was more satisfying than getting the certificate itself.
Step 4: Facing the Auditors — Our Version of Board Exams
If you’ve ever taken a professional exam, you know the feeling:
You’re well prepared, but the nervousness refuses to leave.
Our external auditors from Bulwarkers came with fresh eyes. They inspected everything. They spoke to teams. They looked at logs, tickets, approvals, backups, configs — every nook and corner.
The best compliment we received was this:
“Your team handles privacy the way financial institutions handle money.”
That felt good. Because that’s exactly how we think of resident data.
After weeks of scrutiny…
We passed.
ADDA was certified as ISO/IEC 27001:2022 compliant.
And no, we didn’t throw a party. We slept first.
How This Helps Our Communities Around the World
Now, let’s get to why this matters to you — the community resident, the HOA board member, the estate manager, or the developer evaluating software platforms.
Here’s the heart of it:
ISO 27001 forces a company to build systems that prevent problems, detect problems, and respond to them swiftly if they occur.
For your community, it means:
Your data is handled using internationally recognised practices.
Not just by chance, but by process.
Security checks happen regularly, not only when something goes wrong.
Just like how good RWAs don’t only check the water tank when it overflows.
Only authorised, trained people can access sensitive data.
This reduces accidents and prevents “I clicked something by mistake” situations.
Backups, disaster recovery, and incident response are documented and rehearsed.
If something fails, we know exactly how to restore it without chaos.
Every vendor we work with goes through a risk check.
Because your data deserves a safe neighbourhood.
And the most important part,
your community continues to own its data, because privacy is not negotiable here.
What’s Next?
One of the big misconceptions about ISO 27001 is that it’s a “certificate you achieve.”
Not true.
It’s more like a lifestyle.
You keep at it. You review. You improve. You learn.
It’s kaizen for security.
We will continue strengthening our systems, adding new controls, training teams, and pushing ourselves to stay ahead. Our mission stays the same — to offer communities across the world a secure, private, ad-free, peace-of-mind driven platform.
If you’ve reached this far in the blog, thank you. Most people stop reading when they see the word “compliance.”
But if you care about data safety, governance, or community well-being, then I hope this gave you a peek into the work we do behind the scenes.
And if you still think cybersecurity is like hacking scenes from movies — trust me, the only thing we break into regularly is our fourth cup of coffee during audits.
Stay safe, stay informed, and thank you for trusting ADDA with your community.