ISO 18416:2007 gives general guidelines for the detection and identification of the specified microorganism Candida albicans in cosmetic products. Microorganisms considered as specified in this International Standard might differ from country to country according to national practices or regulations.

The method described in ISO 18416:2007 is based on the detection of Candida albicans in a non-selective liquid medium (enrichment broth), followed by isolation on a selective agar medium. Other methods may be appropriate dependent on the level of detection required.

Because of the large variety of cosmetic products within this field of application, this method might not be suited in every detail, to some products (e.g. certain water-immiscible products). Other International Standards (e.g. ISO 18415) might be appropriate. Other methods (e.g. automated) can be substituted for the test presented here provided that their equivalence has been demonstrated or the method has been otherwise validated.