A SOC 2 readiness assessment is a final look at your organization’s documents, policies, processes, and vulnerabilities before your formal audit takes place. This is a crucial phase of SOC 2 compliance because your auditor will be using these materials in depth to assess your control environment.  

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A SOC 2 readiness assessment provides answers to questions such as:

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• Is my business properly prepared for a SOC 2 audit?
• Does my organization have effective controls and policies in place?
• Are there any security weaknesses or vulnerabilities present?
• If any, how can those vulnerabilities be remediated before the audit?

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Before we dive deeper into readiness assessments, here’s a quick primer on SOC 2 audits. 

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What is a SOC 2 audit? 

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A SOC 2 audit is an examination of your organization’s security and compliance program conducted by a third-party, certified auditor. Once your audit is finished, you’ll receive a SOC 2 report—a widely recognized document assuring customers, prospects, and partners that your services are trustworthy. 

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There are two forms or types of SOC 2 reports that most businesses pursue—Type I or Type II. A Type I is usually obtained faster, but a Type II report is detailed and demonstrates more trust. Many prospects generally prefer—and often require—a SOC 2 Type II report. 

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What to look for during a SOC 2 readiness assessment

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Before entering the official auditing process, it’s best to have a thorough understanding of your organization’s compliance environment. You should presume that each written policy and piece of collected evidence will be inspected.  The SOC 2 readiness assessment is your last chance to remediate any issues or discover any vulnerabilities before your actual audit. 

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SOC 2 readiness assessments can be conducted internally, known as a self-assessment, or by an auditor. Every organization’s assessment and audit will be unique, but here are a few key categories to focus your efforts while preparing for an audit. 

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Policies and controls 

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Policies and controls serve as the foundation for your organization’s security efforts. SOC 2 requires that you establish security policies and protocols for the way employees, contractors, and others interact with your business. These include policies for access management, setting passwords, vendor management, and much more. The SOC 2 readiness assessment is when you should make sure that each policy is up-to-date and correctly maps to controls. 

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Vulnerability and risk management 

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A secure business will have an idea of its strengths and weaknesses when it comes to data privacy and risk mitigation. A SOC 2 readiness assessment is a perfect time to conduct vulnerability scanning, penetration tests, and risk assessments.

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Without a compliance platform like Vanta, you’ll likely have to upload screenshots and create spreadsheets to demonstrate the results of these tests. All vulnerabilities that rank in the High/Medium severity should be resolved before your audit. For every identified risk, be sure to create at least one task to mitigate the risk identified.

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Documentation 

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Documentation usually includes evidence and proof that you appropriately follow security controls and procedures. Documents can include data from infrastructure, virtual tools, test results, and more. 

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Having these materials organized for your auditor will greatly expedite the auditing process. This is the time to make sure all materials are accurate, up-to-date, and align with your organization’s current compliance state.  

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How Vanta helps you prepare for SOC 2 audits 

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Before Vanta, audits were complex, manual events demanding valuable time and energy from employees across the organization. From collecting evidence to coordinating with stakeholders, the compliance process could take up to a full year. 

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Vanta is the first-to-market automated compliance solution that can get you SOC 2 compliant in days instead of months. Here’s how.

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The Vanta platform  

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The Vanta platform is designed to be your central, automated dashboard for every component and function of organizational compliance. In addition to continuous monitoring, automated evidence collection, and seamless integrations, Vanta goes beyond traditional compliance with a robust suite of features.

Vanta uses policy templates to guide you through all stages of developing, implementing, and mapping your security policies for your SOC 2 report. Instead of searching the web for boilerplate policy language, you’ll have access to a library of accurate, customizable policies that map directly to your organization.

Vanta's Smart System Description feature helps you generate a custom System Description—a foundational component of your SOC 2 audit. An unsatisfactory system description can result in significant audit delays. Vanta’s Smart System Description guides you through 13 required sections, many of which are pre-populated based on existing workflows.

Vanta’s Risk Management solution removes the need for spreadsheets and endless emails with stakeholders when it comes to protecting your business. This feature includes easy-to-use workflows to guide organizations, even those new to risk assessments, efficiently through the entire process. Instead of spending days or weeks walking an auditor through your systems and processes, your auditor can access everything in one place through Vanta. 

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In-house support

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As a Vanta customer, your Customer Success Manager will be your trusted advisor and advocate ensuring you have everything needed throughout each milestone of your compliance journey. Vanta’s Customer Success Managers assist every Vanta client through a personalized readiness assessment. With Vanta’s platform serving as the main hub, your CSM will walk you through each component of your assessment so everything is airtight before the audit.