SOC-2 compliance is the most common buzzword amongst SaaS developers and cloud-based solution providers. It ensures that the security of such systems safeguards any personal or sensitive information stored in them. Being SOC-2 compliant is an ongoing process that requires time and effort to maintain.
You may have probably heard that it is important for your business to get this compliance certification but why is it so important? Here are 5 reasons why SOC-2 compliance is important and how it benefits the businesses that have it:
Prevents sophisticated cyberattacks
Cloud-based systems and SaaS products face a lot of cyberattack threats that could severely damage their public image and revenue. Cyberattacks are continually being developed each and that raises the attention of having security systems that are ready for anything.
The SOC-2 compliance audit assesses your product’s capability to withstand the most advanced attacks known and even those unknown. Therefore, this equips the business to be better prepared for safety breaches and ensures that the company has an effective incident response plan.
The SOC 2 compliance software by JupiterOne being used to get this certification conducts comprehensive scans and only alerts of the real attacks and not false-positives.
SOC-2 compliant businesses gain preference with customers
The primary concern of SaaS and cloud-based solution customers is the security of their confidential data. SOC-2 compliance audits address this matter by helping customers easily filter through businesses with secure systems. Unfortunately, if your business is not SOC-2 compliant, customers may perceive you as second-best when compared with competitors.
The compliance certificate that you can visibly display on the business’ website gains customer trust and can lead to more revenue generated by additional clients. Being SOC-2 compliant will bring customers peace of mind and make them feel more at ease with entrusting their company’s data with you.
Regulatory compliance
Another great benefit of being SOC-2 compliant is that regulatory compliance becomes much easier. The stringent requirements of being awarded this compliance certificate make it trusted by other regulatory boards. Therefore, you will not work as twice as hard to gain the approval of regulatory frameworks such as ISO 27001 or HIPAA.
Once you are SOC-2 compliant, most of the requirements of this board will be met, making your regulation process quicker and with fewer flaws. Thus, getting SOC-2 compliance can be perceived as killing two birds with one stone.
Adds value to the security systems in place
Security systems are improved by threat analysis and using that data to find better solutions for preventing attacks. The reports generated by SOC-2 compliant security software help you understand the attacks that are threatening the company.
Those reports can also help rebuild and affirm the security of the organization and improve its internal controls as well as governance.
It adds value because you will save considerable amounts of cash that could be lost when an attack takes place. The business will also be considered a “trust service provider” because of the precautionary measures taken to safeguard valuable information.
Guarantees less downtime
Another aspect of SOC-2 compliance is that it also focuses on the availability and integrity of the product. During the audit, the business will be expected to present how it proposes to deal with potential threats leading to the product’s downtime. Therefore, you will not spend thousands of dollars trying to remedy situations caused by downtime.
Rather you will have full operational capabilities and that will also help the business gain preference over the competition. It proves that SOC-2 is not only focused on confidentiality and privacy but also the product's availability to customers.