ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017 provides guidance for the production of protection profiles and security targets, helping organizations structure security requirements in a way that supports consistent technical review and documented evaluation. It is relevant when teams need to define what a product or system is intended to protect, and how those protection objectives are expressed for procurement, conformity assessment, or assurance activities. As a derived document connected to ISO/IEC TR 15446, it is best used as a supporting reference within security engineering and compliance workflows.

Purpose of ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017

The purpose of ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017 is to guide the preparation of protection profiles and security targets so that security requirements are described clearly, traceably, and in a form suitable for technical assessment. In practice, this supports risk management, requirement definition, and verification activities by helping teams align security claims with evidence and evaluation objectives. It is commonly useful during early-stage security planning, specification development, and documentation review where operational consistency matters.

Compliance applications of ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017

ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017 is often applied in compliance workflows where a product, system, or platform must be evaluated against defined security expectations. It may support engineering documentation, laboratory evaluation planning, and regulatory preparation when security requirements need to be stated in a formal, testable way. Procurement teams and assessors can use it to review whether the security target or protection profile is sufficiently structured for conformity assessment, especially when comparing vendor claims, certification inputs, or technical validation records.

Benefits of ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017

Using ISO/IEC TR 15446:2017 can improve consistency in how security objectives and requirements are documented, which helps reduce ambiguity during testing and review. For engineering and assurance teams, that can support better validation of security functions, clearer traceability, and more reliable comparison between planned controls and evaluation evidence. It also assists procurement and compliance functions by making technical documents easier to assess, which can lower rework, support quality assurance, and strengthen preparation for conformity assessment or audit activities.

• Guidance for structuring protection profiles and security targets in a reviewable format
• Support for security requirement definition, traceability, and documented evaluation
• Useful input for compliance workflows, procurement review, and assurance planning
• Helps align technical documentation with testing, validation, and risk management activities