A compliance software should help auditing become easier. But small-sized companies may be caught in a tense situation. Before they can arrange their SOC 2 controls, they must first implement, configure, and learn the intricate compliance system. This poses a question. What happens when the tool intended to decrease compliance become a separate project?
CertAssist developed out of this frustration. Its developers had worked on compliance and audits that were based on SOC 2, ISO 27001 and other frameworks. The developers of this software had to contend with platforms that offered a wide range of functions and integrations. However, their employers utilized spreadsheets to create critical auditing pieces. For smaller organizations, simpler SOC 2 compliance software can sometimes be the more practical answer.
Begin by listing the Tasks That Are Required to be Completed
Take out the jargon in software and it’s simpler to comprehend. An organization must work through the relevant Trust Services Criteria, establish adequate controls, write down policies, gather evidence, track progress, and make the material accessible to audit by an independent third party. A platform can help organize these actions without needing to connect to every cloud-based service or identity system that the business uses.
Integrations that are automated offer a lot of value. Automated integrations can save an business a lot of time when collecting evidence in an ever-changing environment. This doesn’t mean that the same infrastructure required to be used for SOC 2 for startups. A startup that has a limited technology environment might choose to provide evidence manually and avoid maintaining numerous integrations.
The Software and the Audit are separate expenses
The process of budgeting can become confusing when companies make every compliance expense one number. SOC 2 costs include more than software. Internal staff are busy preparing policies, addressing weaknesses in control, organizing evidence, and working together with the auditor. Independent audits are also charged their own fees.
Companies who are researching SOC 2 certification costs must be aware of a distinction in terminology: SOC 2 produces an independent attestation report instead of a certification in the exact sense as ISO 27001. ISO 27001. When businesses are looking for pricing, they usually refer to the cost as “certification cost”. Whatever terminology is used in the budget, the software is not a substitute for an independent audit.
Middle Ground Doesn’t Need to be an Excel Spreadsheet
Spreadsheets can be affordable and familiar but become unwieldy when they are spread across several files.
It is not required to use an enterprise platform for alternative. CertAssist displays the SOC 2 controls on one central display, and allows you to edit templates for policies and evidence, progress tracking, and auditors have the ability to only view. Multi-factor authentication is required to safeguard the platform. The initial price for the platform is $225 per month. The normal price is $375 monthly or $3999 per year.
A lack of integration could also mean less exposure
CertAssist deliberately doesn’t connect to any company’s operational systems. The platform for compliance isn’t granted access to the cloud or the identity environment.
This option is not without its tradeoffs. It is the obligation for the company to supply evidence which could have been automatically collected. The manual effort is reasonable for a small team in exchange for a easier setup, less expense and less connections to third party.
Complexity Purchase when it Solves a Problem
In a business that is expanding the manual process of collecting evidence may turn into inefficient. This is when continuous monitoring and extensive integrations may pay their fees.
Until then, the goal isn’t to purchase the most advanced compliance platform available. It’s important to keep the evidence credible and to organize compliance work, and manage the audit independently. Good software should remove friction from that process. If the implementation of the compliance platform begins to appear like a more complex task than the preparation for SOC 2 itself, it may simply be more tool than what the business currently requires.