Standards and certifications

CIBORIUS is certified to DIN 77200, ISO 9001, ISO 45001 and ISO 14001, assessed by the VBG for occupational safety and rated silver by EcoVadis.

Standards define what a service has to fulfil. A certification is proof from an independent body that a company actually meets those requirements – examined on site, for a limited period, and repeatedly. In the security industry that distinction matters, because the service itself is hard to inspect: anyone wanting to judge whether a provider works reliably depends on audited evidence.

Standard, certification, rating – three different things

• Standard or guideline – the set of rules itself, for example DIN 77200 or a VdS guideline. Knowing a standard is not the same as being certified to it.
• Certification – an independent body audits and issues a certificate with a defined scope and term. It is maintained through surveillance audits.
• Rating – not a pass or fail but a classification, such as the score and medal awarded by EcoVadis.
• Statutory obligation – not a quality credential but a minimum precondition: the instruction or competence examination under § 34a of the German Trade Regulation Act.

The most important standards and credentials in the security industry

Industry-specific

• DIN 77200 – the German series of standards for security services. The only credential in this list written specifically for the guarding industry.
• VdS 3138 – approval of alarm receiving and service centres: structural, technical and organisational requirements.
• VdS 2172 – approval of intervention centres, that is, the part of the security chain that responds to an alarm on the ground.

Management systems

• ISO 9001 – quality management: traceable processes and responsibilities.
• ISO 14001 – environmental management: recording, assessing and reducing environmental impact. In guarding, mileage driven is the biggest lever.
• ISO 45001 – occupational safety: identifying and reducing hazards systematically, in guarding for example for lone working and night duty.
• ISO/IEC 27001 – information security. Relevant because a security provider knows site plans, locking systems and alarm routes.
• ISO/IEC 27701IEC 27701 – data protection, as an extension of ISO/IEC 27001.
• AMS – occupational safety management system, assessed on site by the accident insurance institution.

Sustainability and people

• EcoVadis – a rating of environment, labour and human rights, ethics and procurement. Increasingly required in tenders.
• IHK-certified training company – approval to deliver vocational training: an indication that qualification is built in house and not merely bought in.

How to recognise a credential that holds up

A logo on a website is not a certificate. Evidence only becomes robust through four details:

• Scope – which sites and which services does it cover? A certificate for one branch does not automatically apply nationwide.
• Issuing body – and whether that body is accredited for the standard (in Germany by the DAkkS).
• Term – certificates are time-limited, usually to three years, with annual surveillance.
• Certificate number – so that the evidence can be verified with the issuing body.

What this means for clients

In public procurement and for critical infrastructure, certificates are frequently a condition of admission rather than a bonus – without them a bid is not evaluated at all. In the private sector they arrive through the supply chain: a company with its own reporting obligations has to be able to document the conditions under which its service providers work.

For the client, no certificate replaces their own judgement about staff and site supervision. But it shifts the burden of proof: instead of believing assurances, you can ask for evidence.

The credentials CIBORIUS holds are listed with their scope and validity on the certifications page.