It closes deals
"Do you have your SOC 2?" is often the first question from a prospect's security team. Having the report ready turns a weeks-long security review into a quick attachment.
The trust report North American buyers ask for.
SOC 2 is an attestation, performed by a licensed CPA firm, against the AICPA Trust Services Criteria: Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality and Privacy. A Type I report assesses design at a point in time; Type II assesses operating effectiveness over a period.
The standard
SOC 2 — AICPA Trust Services Criteria
Who needs it
SaaS and technology vendors — particularly selling into the US — whose customers require independent assurance over how they safeguard data.
5
Trust Services Criteria covered
The basics
SOC 2 is a report, not a certificate. A licensed CPA firm examines your controls against the AICPA's Trust Services Criteria and writes an independent opinion your customers can read and trust. It's become the de-facto security credential for software companies in North America.
A Type I report says your controls are well-designed at a point in time; a Type II says they actually operated effectively over a period — usually three to twelve months. Most serious buyers want the Type II, because it proves you don't just look secure on paper for a single day.
Why it matters
"Do you have your SOC 2?" is often the first question from a prospect's security team. Having the report ready turns a weeks-long security review into a quick attachment.
Enterprises won't buy without it. A SOC 2 is your ticket into the rooms where the bigger budgets live.
An independent CPA's opinion carries weight a self-assessment never will — third-party proof, not a promise.
Security (required) plus any of Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity and Privacy.
Design at a moment (I) versus operating effectiveness across a window, usually 3–12 months (II).
Type II demands sampled evidence throughout the period — continuous collection is essential.
Access reviews, change management and incident response mapped to the criteria.
The killer with SOC 2 is the Type II window: you need months of continuous, timestamped evidence, collected while you're also running the business. Reconstructing that by hand the week before the audit is exactly where teams burn out.
Do it once, reuse it everywhere. Evidence you collect for SOC 2is automatically mapped to every other framework whose controls it also satisfies — and since these standards overlap heavily, most of that work isn't repeated.
See exactly how Compliance One maps SOC 2 to your environment in a 30-minute walkthrough — and how much of it we handle for you.