6 Reasons your company needs a SOC 2

What is a SOC 2 and why does your company need one? Created by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), a SOC 2 audit performed by an objective third party assures your clients and prospects that you have security guidelines in place — and that you follow through on them. 

SOC 2 reports are unique to each organization; companies design controls to comply with one or more of the five Trust Services Criteria — security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy — with security as the foundation of every SOC 2. 

You need a SOC 2 — and here’s why: 

1. You’re a B2B, SaaS, or PaaS provider processing or storing personal or confidential info

• If you gather or store customer data at any scale, security should be front-of-mind. With cybersecurity concerns front-and-center for your enterprise customers and their users, potential clients must ensure that your product is secure.

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2. More orgs are outsourcing to vendors, and prospects are asking for SOC 2 certification

• As companies select vendors with whom to entrust their sensitive data,  they are seeking reliable proof of your company’s security. A SOC 2 report is often the primary document that security departments rely upon to assess a vendor’s security risk. Orgs need a way to ensure that vendors are keeping data safe and secure — and service organizations need a consistent way to prove their security. The SOC standard is a well-known U.S. security standard, and SOC reports have become a common part of doing business.

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3. The SOC 2 framework can help your company get its policies and procedures in order

• Addressing security in a comprehensive way means putting systems in place to monitor and mitigate risk across your company. By taking a proactive approach to security and establishing controls using the SOC 2 framework, you’ll be developing and implementing policies and procedures that can grow with you as your company grows.

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4. SOC 2 helps you shorten the sales cycle by addressing security up front

• Instead of going back and forth with prospects about your company’s security, simply share your SOC 2 audit report as evidence of your verified security practices. SOC 2 certification can help pave the way for a swift and smooth sales process, and a business relationship rooted in a commitment to data security.

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5. Automation means that getting secure is easier — and more cost-effective — than ever before

• Getting a SOC 2 used to mean a significant time commitment, again and again. Security and compliance software like Vanta rewrites that story. Automation benefits all parts of the equation, streamlining the audit for you and your auditor alike — which saves you time and money in comparison with typical SOC 2 audit processes.

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6. Getting secure sooner is better than facing the fallout from a breach later

• Proactively investing in your company’s holistic security posture today can save you headaches — and serious fines — tomorrow. As your company grows, the costs of a potential data breach increase exponentially, both financially and in terms of maintaining and stewarding customer trust. The best time to get secure is always now.

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Vanta is “security in a box” for companies of all sizes — helping you get audit-ready fast, and supporting your company through a successful SOC 2 audit and beyond. Ready to get started?