A compliance program should help auditing become easier. However, small businesses may be placed in a tricky position. They need to set up an, configure and maintain the platform for compliance before they can implement their SOC 2 control. It raises a good question. At what point does the instrument designed to decrease compliance become a separate project that is its own?
CertAssist developed out of this frustration. Its founders have worked on compliance implementations and audits and ISO 27001 frameworks. They had to deal with platforms that were packed with features and integrations while businesses still rely on spreadsheets for essential elements of preparation for audits. For smaller organizations, simpler SOC 2 compliance software can sometimes be the more practical answer.
Start by identifying the tasks that Must Be Completed
Get rid of the software jargon, and it’s much more understandable. A company needs to work through the pertinent Trust Services Criteria, establish the appropriate controls, establish policies, record evidence, track progress, and then make that information available to audit by an independent third party. Platforms can be used to streamline these tasks without having to connect them with every cloud service or identity system the company has in place.
Automated integrations can be extremely useful. Automating can save a large organization a lot of time in collecting evidence in a changing environment. But this doesn’t mean that exactly the same technology is required to be used for SOC 2 in startups. Startups that have a compact technology environment may prefer to provide evidence manually and not maintain a multitude of integrations.
The Audit and the Software Are Two Different Costs
Budgeting becomes difficult when companies take each compliance expense as a separate number. The SOC 2 cost includes more than just software. The internal staff has to devote time in preparing policies, addressing weaknesses in control, arranging evidence as well as working with auditors. The independent audit has its own set of fees.
Companies researching SOC 2 certification costs must also understand a terminology distinction: SOC 2 produces an independent attestation report, not an official certification in the same meaning as ISO 27001. However the term “certification cost”, which is often employed by businesses looking for price information, is still commonly used. Software is not a substitute for the independent auditor regardless of the terms employed in the budget.
Middle Ground Doesn’t Have to be A Spreadsheet
Spreadsheets can be inexpensive and familiar but become unwieldy when spread across multiple files.
The alternative doesn’t need to be a enterprise-level platform. CertAssist puts the SOC 2 controls on a centralized board that can be edited templates for policy and evidence along with progress management, as well as auditing access that is read-only. Multi-factor authentication is essential for security purposes to ensure the system is secure. The platform’s launch price is $225 monthly. The normal price is $375 a month or $3999 annually.
The same integration that reduces exposure is also possible by eliminating the need for it
CertAssist intentionally does not connect to any company’s operational systems. The platform for compliance isn’t given access to the cloud or the identity environment.
This approach is not without its trade-offs. Evidence that could have easily been collected automatically must instead be provided by the company. The additional manual work required is reasonable for a smaller team, but it will result in a easier setup, less expense and fewer connections with third parties.
Purchase Complexity When Complexity Solves the issue
In an organization that is growing the manual process of collecting evidence may turn into inefficient. Continuous monitoring and extensive integrations will pay off when you get to that point.
The goal of the compliance stack is not to be the most advanced one that is available. It’s important to keep the evidence credible and to organize compliance work as well as manage the independent audit. A good software program should help in reducing the friction. If implementing the compliance platform starts to seem like a bigger project than preparing for SOC 2 itself, it might be just a different tool than what the business currently requires.