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SOC 2 Certification
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Empower Your Saleswith the SOC 2 Certification

SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) is a type of audit report that attests to the trustworthiness of services provided by a service organization. It is commonly used to assess the risks associated with outsourced software solutions that store customer data online. SOC 2 reports are the result of an official SOC 2 audit. These reports attest that a service organization’s solution (such as the service from a SaaS company) has been audited by a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), using standards laid down by the AICPA, with regard to one or more specific attributes: Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality and/or Privacy.

Why SOC 2? It’s the Report Your Customers Want to See

SOC 2 is a valuable tool for selling your SaaS solution to enterprise customers. 

Providing a SOC 2 report streamlines your sales process. Without a SOC 2 report, each one of your customers (or potential customers) may have to commission their own audit of your service before they can buy it, and then repeat that audit annually. That’s not only a big commitment to make before a purchase, it’s also a huge burden for the service provider to support audit after audit, indefinitely.

With a SOC 2 report in hand, you’re removing that security compliance hurdle for anyone considering your service.  

 

Understanding the SOC 2 Certification Process

The Five Trust Services Principles of SOC 2

A SOC 2 audit can only be performed by a CPA. At their core, these audits gauge how the service delivery of a system fulfills the selected trust principles of SOC 2. 

Availability

The process, product, or service must remain available per the agreement between user and provider. Both parties either explicitly or implicitly agree on the appropriate level of availability of the service. A system need not be evaluated for efficiency or accessibility to meet the trust principle of availability. To audit availability, an auditor must consider the reliability and quality of the network, response to security incidents and site failover.

Confidentiality

If access to the data is limited to certain individuals or organizations, it must be treated as confidential. Data protected by the principle of confidentiality could include anything the user submits for the eyes of company employees only, including but not limited to business plans, internal price lists, intellectual property and other forms of financial information. An auditor will take into account data encryption, network firewalls, software firewalls and access controls.

Processing Integrity

System processing is complete, valid, accurate, timely, and authorized to meet business objectives.

Privacy

The principle of privacy applies to the collection, disclosure, disposal, storage and use of personal information with regard to the generally accepted principles of privacy (GAPP) as established by the AICPA. It applies to Personal Identifiable Information (PII), information that can be used to differentiate persons, including but not limited to names, addresses, phone numbers and social security numbers. Other data, including race, gender, medical profiles, and religion are also covered by GAPP. An auditor must verify controls in place to prevent the dissemination of PII.

Security

System resources must be defended against outside access to comply with the principle of security. Access controls must adequately resist attempts at intrusion, device manipulation, unauthorized deletion, data misuse, or improper modification and release. An auditor looks at IT security tools like WAF (web application firewalls), encryption and intrusion detection in addition to administrative controls such as background checks and authorizations.

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