What are technical standards?
The technical standards are documents prepared by expert committees that contain technical specifications and address a specific topic. These standards must be approved by a Recognized Standardization Body.
The main bodies that develop standards are the national standards bodies. The standardization organizations are responsible for coordinating and developing this work, developing regulatory and management systems.
In Spain, it is AENOR (Spanish Association for Standardization and Certification) that has developed UNE 19601 Criminal compliance management systems. This Standard establishes the requirements to implement, maintain and improve a criminal compliance management system in organizations with the objective of preventing the commission of crimes.
At the European level, it is the CEN (European Committee for Standardization) that prepares the European EN standards.
Most national standards bodies are members of the International Organization for Standardization or ISO, the body in charge of promote the development of international standards, through the standardization of voluntary standards used in companies.
What are the main technical standards that we encounter in terms of regulatory compliance?
ISO 19600: Establishes the requirements to implement a Compliance Management System. The standard focuses on establishing surveillance and control measures to prevent crimes and significantly reduce the risk of committing them. Although it is a very effective standard that adapts to any organization regardless of its sector or size, it is not a certifiable standard.
ISO 37001: It establishes a series of measures to help companies through their implementation to combat bribery and promote an ethical business culture. This standard, which can be perfectly integrated with other management systems due to its structure, unlike the internal one, is certifiable.
UNE 19601: This standard, also certifiable, develops the requirements that appear in the Penal Code for crime management and prevention models and incorporates good practices in Compliance matters.
UNE 19602: Establishes the requirements that the elements of a tax compliance management system in organizations must meet, allowing the certification of the system.
In summary, these rules allow companies to comply with the ethical standards concerned with the observance of legal regulations and ensuring that the system implemented by an entity in terms of compliance is adequate.
