What is the difference between SOC 2 Type 1 and Type 2?

Type 1 reports on control design at a point in time; Type 2 reports on design and operating effectiveness over a period (commonly 6–12 months).

Which Trust Services Criteria should we include?

Security is required; Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy are optional based on services and customer commitments.

How long does a SOC 2 audit take?

Type 1 can be completed once controls are ready; Type 2 requires an operating period plus fieldwork and reporting, often several weeks after the period ends.

What evidence is commonly requested?

Policies and procedures, access control logs, change tickets, vulnerability scans, incident records, backups, training attestations, vendor due diligence, and sample selections supporting tests.

How does SOC 2 differ from ISO 27001?

SOC 2 is an attestation report aligned to TSC and issued by a CPA firm; ISO 27001 is a certification of an ISMS by an accredited body with Annex A controls.

Do we need a readiness tool to pass SOC 2?

Readiness tools can help clients organize artifacts, but auditors should conduct and document work in an independent system of record to preserve independence and traceability.

Frameworks Explained

SOC 2

SOC 2 is an attestation over the AICPA Trust Services Criteria: Security, Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity, Privacy. It demonstrates that your controls are suitably designed (Type I) and effectively operated (Type II) to protect customer data and fulfill service commitments. It’s the de-facto assurance report for SaaS and managed services.

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What is SOC 2’s target audience & industries?

SaaS, cloud/managed services, data platforms, fintech/health tech, and any B2B vendor facing security questionnaires or enterprise due diligence..

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Does it apply to my organization?

You likely need SOC 2 if you:

Provide SaaS or managed services handling customer data
Sell to mid-market/enterprise customers with security reviews
Process, store, or transmit sensitive data for clients

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What are the benefits and risks of conducting a SOC 2 Audit?

Shortens security reviews and boosts win rates
Provides independent evidence of operational security
Builds a foundation for ISO 27001/HITRUST mapping
Powers a Trust Center (share under NDA)
Win deals faster and reduce security questionnaire friction
Strengthen security posture with auditable controls
Avoid deal blockers and due-diligence delays

What are the core SOC 2 requirements?

Defined system description: Scope, architecture, data flows, boundaries, tenant isolation, locations, and dependencies.
Trust Services Criteria (TSC) selection: Security (required) plus any of Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity, Privacy, aligned to commitments/SLAs.
Security baseline: Access control (SSO/MFA/RBAC, privileged access reviews), secure configuration/hardening, network security, EDR, encryption at rest/in transit.
Change & SDLC controls: Secure coding standards, code review, dependency scanning, pre-prod testing, approval workflows, deployment logging.
Vulnerability & patch management: Authenticated scanning, risk ratings, remediation SLAs, exceptions with time-bound approvals.
Operations & resilience: Backups/restore tests, DR planning (RTO/RPO), capacity & availability monitoring, incident/problem management with post-mortems.
Privacy & confidentiality (if in scope): Data classification, retention/disposal, DLP (where warranted), privacy notices/consents, vendor DPAs.
Vendor/subservice governance: Risk tiering, assessments, contractual commitments; carve-out vs inclusive approach and clear CUECs.
Evidence of operation: Tickets, logs, scans, access exports, metrics for 6–12 months (Type II).
Independent audit & restricted distribution: CPA opinion; SOC 2 report shared under NDA; bridge letter management.

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What are the general guidelines for executing a SOC 2 audit ?

Pick TSC scope: Security (required) + optional Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity, Privacy based on customer commitments.
System description: Document architecture, environments, data types, boundaries, tenant isolation, vendor dependencies.
Subservice strategy & CUECs: Decide carve-out vs inclusive; list CUECs plainly and align with contracts/Trust Center.
Security controls: Identity (SSO/MFA), least privilege, PAM, secure baselines, vulnerability mgmt/patching SLAs, EDR, encryption at rest/in transit.
SDLC & CI/CD: Secure coding standards, dependency scanning, code reviews, pre-prod testing, change approvals, deployment logging.
Operations & Resilience: Backups/restore tests, DR/RTO/RPO targets, capacity/availability monitoring, incident/problem mgmt with post-mortems.
Privacy/Confidentiality: Data classification, retention/disposal, DLP where warranted, vendor DPAs, privacy notices aligned to promises.
Evidence automation: Centralize tickets, logs, scans, access exports; tag artifacts to controls for quick sampling.
Readiness → Type I → Type II: Close gaps, perform Type I if needed, then operate for 6–12 months and complete Type II.
Continuous improvement: Track risks, KRIs/KPIs, control exceptions; refresh Trust Center assets and maintain bridge letters.

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What are estimated timelines to complete a SOC 1 audit?

Type I:

Startup: 3–8 weeks
Small: 6–12 weeks
Medium: 12–18 weeks
Large: 16–24+ weeks

Type II (6–12 month period):

Startup 6 - 12 months
Small: 8–14 months
Medium: 9–15 months
Large: 10–18 months

What are the typical costs?

Costs vary by size, scope, and readiness by organizations: (T1 / T2)

Startups: 1 - 25 employees, single product, 1 prod environment, 1 region, few to no vendors - $15k–$40k / $35k–$75k
Small Companies: <100, 1–2 products, 1–2 environments, low vendor count - $25k–$70k / $45k–$110k
Medium Companies: 100 - 1,000 employees, multi-product, multi-region, moderate vendor count - $50k–$110k / $110k–$230k
Large Companies: >1,000 employees, complex/regulatory environment, high vendor count - $110k–$220k+ / $230k–$480k+
TSC scope (Security only vs +Availability/Confidentiality/etc.) and evidence automation materially affect cost.
(Ranges include typical readiness + audit/assessment (and operating period where applicable). Costs are USD and combine internal enablement/consulting + external auditor/assessor/cert body where relevant).

Where to Learn More

ISACA: SOC 2 Guidance & Blog — https://www.isaca.org/resources
Deloitte: SOC Examinations Overview — https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/risk/articles/soc-examinations.html
PwC: SOC Reporting Explainer — https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/trust-transparency/soc-reports.html