ISACA Intellectual Property Guidelines

ISACA administers, maintains and enforces an intellectual property (IP) policy that is designed to facilitate dissemination of its copyrighted IP, while still protecting it. The policy is also designed to protect the reputation of the ISACA brand worldwide. ISACA's reputation as a recognized global leader in IT governance, security and assurance has led professionals and enterprises to rely on ISACA products and services as trusted guidelines and best practices for the profession. As a result, ISACA's brands have become valuable assets, creating a strong identity with quality and differentiating ISACA's products and services within the marketplace.

Because ISACA's web site carries many documents published by the IT Governance Institute (ITGI), the IP policy is written to protect both organizations. For more specific details on the aspects of the IP policy pertaining to ITGI, visit www.itgi.org.

The following FAQs will provide further details about ISACA's IP policy. For any questions not covered below, or to request permission to use ISACA's or ITGI's copyrighted material in accordance with this policy, contact jskiba@isaca.org.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What trademarks and copyrights do ISACA and ITGI own?
• Are freely available documents protected by the IP policy?
• What types of ISACA- and ITGI-copyrighted works or materials are covered by the IP policy?
• Are there special allowances for use of ISACA's and ITGI's copyrighted IP in the academic setting? How about use within an enterprise?
• What are the basic rules for usage of ISACA's and ITGI's copyrighted IP?
• What are the basic rules for usage of ISACA's and ITGI's trademarks?
• What are the basic rules specific to use of ISACA's and ITGI's logos? What about acronyms, such as CISA or CISM?
• May an ISACA member use an ISACA or ITGI logo to promote his/her company?
• Are links from the ISACA web site to a third-party site possible?
• Can ISACA's or ITGI's copyrighted IP be translated into non-English languages? If so, what rules govern the translation process?

What trademarks and copyrights do ISACA and ITGI own?

ISACA is and shall remain the sole and complete owner of all trademarks in the following works, all intellectual property rights inherent in or associated with any of these marks and works, and all intellectual property developed by ISACA, including but not limited to CISA/CISM certifications, conferences, manuals and publications:

• Certified Information Security Manager^® (CISM^®)
• Certified Information Systems Auditor™ (CISA^®)
• Global Communique^®
• ISACA®^® (ISACA^®)
• Information Systems Audit and Control Foundation^® (ISACF^®)
• Information Systems Control Association^® (ISCA^®)

(Note: This is an umbrella organization for ISACA and ITGI.)

ITGI is and shall remain the sole and complete owner of all intellectual property rights inherent in or associated with any of the following works, and all intellectual property developed by ITGI:

• COBIT^® Control Objectives for Information and related Technology
• COBIT^® 3 rd Edition^®
• COBIT Quickstart^®
• COBIT Online^®
• Control Objectives for Net Centric Technology (CONCT^®)
• IT Governance Institute^® (and logo)^®

Are freely available documents protected by the IP policy?

Certain ISACA and ITGI works are published and made freely available through complimentary download from the ISACA web site. However, this does not mean they are in the public domain and may be used freely or without permission or attribution. In fact, all such works are protected by copyright and are subject to the rules in the IP policy. From time to time, ISACA and ITGI may choose to make certain documents freely available, to facilitate widespread adoption, use and recognition by third parties. By making the publications freely available and by expressly authorizing copying under limited circumstances (e.g., for personal, noncommercial use), ISACA and ITGI have given selected users of the works the right to make and use copies of the works.

What types of ISACA- and ITGI-copyrighted works or materials are covered by the IP policy?

ISACA and ITGI articles, books, software, CDs and other published materials, including the contents of the ISACA and ITGI web sites, are protected by copyright under both US and other national/international laws. ISACA and/or ITGI own all rights, title and interest in these items.

Are there special allowances for use of ISACA's and ITGI's copyrighted IP in the academic setting? How about internal use?

Reproduction of selections from ISACA and ITGI works can be used for academic and internal, noncommercial purposes. Such uses must include full attribution to either ISACA or ITGI, as applicable.

What are the basic rules for usage of ISACA's and ITGI's copyrighted IP?

ISACA's and ITGI's works (e.g., articles, publications, exams, conferences, research) are designed and created as educational and reference resources for boards of directors, executive management and IT control professionals. These works are protected by copyright, regardless of their form.

ISACA's and ITGI's copyrighted works may not be used, copied, reproduced, modified, displayed, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written approval of ISACA and/or ITGI. If approval is given to use the material in any format (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), full attribution must be given to ISACA or ITGI, as applicable.

Requests to use ISACA and ITGI copyrighted materials should be directed to jskiba@isaca.org. Requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

What are the basic rules for usage of ISACA's and ITGI's trademarks?

ISACA's and ITGI's trademarks may not be used by third parties to promote events such as conferences, review courses, consulting services or commercial products. Such use of these trademarks may falsely imply an endorsement or approval of the produce or service by ISACA or ITGI. For fair use (under trademark laws) or other truthful references that are not likely to cause confusion as to any association, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement by ISACA or ITGI, no permission is required.

Requests to use ISACA and ITGI trademarks should be directed to jskiba@isaca.org. Requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

What are the basic rules specific to use of ISACA's and ITGI's logos? What about acronyms, such as CISA or CISM?

ISACA's or ITGI's logo may be used by third parties to promote their conferences only if ISACA or ITGI is a conference sponsor.

Individuals may not use the CISA, CISM, ISACA or ITGI logos, as such use can falsely imply endorsement by ISACA or ITGI. However, for business cards, certified individuals can use the CISA and/or CISM acronym after their name (e.g., John Smith, CISA, CISM). The acronym should be presented in uppercase letters and without the registration mark (®).

May an ISACA member use an ISACA logo to promote his/her company?

No. An individual's membership in ISACA does not include or accrue to his/her company. A member's use of the logo in connection with his/her business may cause the people and organizations receiving the member's promotional materials to believe mistakenly that the member's company and its products or services are affiliated with or endorsed by ISACA. Such statements impermissibly trade on the reputation of ISACA and, in fact, misrepresent an individual or enterprise as retaining a credential that does not exist.

Are links from the ISACA web site to a third-party site possible?

ISACA is happy to consider a link between its site and a third-party site. In evaluating a potential link, ISACA would consider the third party's purpose and organizational objectives, the appropriateness of the content of the third-party site relative to ISACA's constituency and the value such a linkage might provide both parties. Such external linkages are done through the K-NET portion of the ISACA web site. Requests for links should be submitted to knet@isaca.org.

Can ISACA's or ITGI's copyrighted IP be translated into non-English languages? If so, what rules govern the translation process?

Yes, it is possible to translate ISACA's or ITGI's copyrighted IP into non-English languages. Any individuals or organizations wishing to do so must execute an appropriate agreement with ISACA or ITGI.

Publications may not be translated into any language other than the one to which rights have been specifically granted. Already translated works may not be retranslated into any other language.

Translations must be peer-reviewed and validated by experts in the governance, security and assurance fields, if applicable to the translation. Only after successful completion of this review will ISACA or ITGI grant approval of the translation and post it on the web site(s) as a “sanctioned translation.”

ISACA or ITGI publications that have been translated may not be resold in any media format without prior written approval. ITGI reserves the right to publish and disseminate the translated materials free of charge via the ITGI web site, in a manner corresponding to the published and disseminated English version on the web site.