Data protection is a universal issue for every organization, including the ones that contract out critical services (e.g., SaaS, cloud-computing providers). This is understandable given the risk of cyber assaults like data theft, extortion, and malware installation to businesses. This occurs due to improper data handling, especially with application and network security providers.
The Service Organization Controls 2 (SOC 2) auditing process verifies that your service providers are keeping your company’s data safe and secure. When looking for a SaaS provider, any company should demand at least SOC 2 compliance.
What Is SOC 2?
SOC 2, created by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), is a cybersecurity compliance standard designed to guarantee the safety of client data during storage and processing by third-party service providers.
The AICPA created SOC 2 to set standards for managing client data based on five “trust service principles”:
- Security
- Availability
- Processing integrity
- Confidentiality
- Privacy
SOC reports fall into one of two categories:
- Type I details the vendor’s systems and how well they conform to established trust standards.
- Type II describes the efficiency with which those systems function in practise.
Benefits:
- Data security: SOC 2 is specifically designed to ensure the security of client data and is built on a set of security controls that organizations must implement and maintain. This helps to prevent unauthorized access, loss, or theft of sensitive data.
- Goodwill and customer trust: SOC 2 compliance sends a strong message to stakeholders that an organization takes the security of their data seriously. This can help to build trust with clients and demonstrate a commitment to protecting their sensitive information. This improves the market’s perception of the brand and contributes to its credibility.
- Improved processes: The SOC 2 framework requires organizations to establish and follow a set of information security processes. This helps organizations to identify and address security risks, maintain a strong security posture, and continuously improve their security practices.
- Better vendor management: By only working with SOC 2-compliant vendors, organizations can reduce their risk of data breaches and other security incidents caused by third-party service providers. This helps organizations to better manage vendor risk and ensure that their sensitive data is protected.
- Competitive advantage: SOC 2 compliance can give organizations a competitive advantage in their industry, as clients may prefer to work with companies that have demonstrated their commitment to data security.
- Cost savings: By proactively addressing information security risks and implementing strong security processes, organizations can reduce the likelihood of costly security incidents, minimize the impact of data breaches, and potentially save money in the long run.
- Operating efficiency: The controls must be shown to be operating effectively and must be tested on a regular basis for at least six months to meet the SOC2 Type II auditing requirements for operating effectiveness. Because of this, SOC2 Audits guarantee a reliable system of information security controls is always in place.
- Regulatory compliance: SOC 2 requirements, like those for HIPAA and ISO 27001 certification, are compatible with other frameworks. Accordingly, meeting the requirements of other rules and regulations becomes easier. It can help your company comply with regulations more quickly.
Conclusion
Today, the payoff from passing a SOC 2 Audit and obtaining a SOC 2 report is well worth the effort put in to get there. This is because a SOC 2 audit shows that a provider is serious about protecting their sensitive client data, building trust with their clients, improving their security posture, managing vendor risk, and demonstrating their commitment to information security. This boosts the company’s credibility, guarantees its survival, and gives it an edge in the market. With ISO27701 and SOC 2 compliance, Kanerika is consistently demonstrating its commitment towards maintaining customer’s data privacy and protecting the personal information within the organization.
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