A compliance software should help auditing become easier. However, small businesses may be placed in a tough spot. They must implement, configure and master a compliance platform before they can organise their SOC 2 control. This poses a question. What are the conditions that make a tool to make compliance easier turn into an entirely new venture?
CertAssist is the result of this frustration. The team behind it had been involved in compliance audits and implementations in SOC 2, ISO 27001 and other frameworks. They encountered numerous platforms with integrations and features while organizations still rely on spreadsheets for crucial elements of preparation for audits. For smaller organizations, simpler SOC 2 compliance software can sometimes be the more practical answer.
Begin with the job that must be completed
Remove the terms used in software and the primary requirement becomes easier to comprehend. The company should work through Trust Services Criteria and establish the appropriate controls. They should also record policies, collect evidence, track their development, and make this material available for independent auditors. Platforms are able to handle these processes without having to be linked with the various identity or cloud-based services that the company uses.
Automated integrations can be extremely valuable. Automating the gathering of evidence by large companies in a world that is constantly changing could reduce time. That doesn’t automatically make the same architecture necessary to be used for SOC 2 for startups. Startups with a limited technology infrastructure might prefer to record evidence on their own instead of maintaining numerous integrations.
The cost for the audit as well as the cost of the software are two different expenses
When companies treat all compliance expenses as a single number, budgeting can become confusing. SOC 2 costs include more than software. Internal employees are involved in preparing policies, addressing the issues with control, arranging evidence, and working with the auditor. The independent audit also has its own cost.
Companies who are researching SOC 2 certification cost should also be aware of the distinction in terminology: SOC 2 produces an independent attestation report rather than an official certification in the same terms as ISO 27001. ISO 27001. However the term “certification cost” is commonly employed by businesses looking for price data, is widely used. Whatever the terminology used in the budget, the software does not replace the independent audit.
The Middle Ground Doesn’t Have to Be a Spreadsheet
Spreadsheets can be inexpensive and familiar, but they can become a hassle when they are spread across many files.
The alternative does not have to be a platform for enterprise. CertAssist displays the SOC 2 controls on a central board, provides editable templates for policies and evidence, along with progress tracking, and auditors will only view. Mandatory multi-factor authentication helps protect access to the system. The launch price stated at $225 will be followed by regular pricing at $375 per month or $3,999 per year.
No Integration Can Also Mean Less Exposure
CertAssist does not intend to connect with a company’s operating systems. The evidence is presented without giving the platform with access to cloud environments as well as identities environments.
This method involves a tradeoff. It is the obligation of the company to provide proof that could have been collected automatically. In the case of small teams, the added work could be justified in exchange with a simple set-up, lower software costs, and with fewer external connections.
Buy Complexity When Complexity Solves a Problem
An expanding company may arrive at a point where manual evidence gathering is no longer efficient. Continuous monitoring and extensive integrations will be beneficial once you have reached that point.
Until then, the goal isn’t necessarily to buy the most sophisticated compliance software available. It’s essential to keep the evidence credible as well as organize the compliance tasks and oversee the audit independently. The best software will remove any friction out of the process. If implementing the compliance platform is beginning to appear like a more complex project than preparing for SOC 2 itself, it might be just a different tool than the company currently requires.