SOC 2 Compliance Report & Audit Services

What is a SOC 2 Report?

The System and Organization Control (SOC) 2 examination reports on one or any combination of the AICPA’s Trust Services Criteria including Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy. It demonstrates an organization’s commitment to its customer requirements and cybersecurity best practices.

Purpose and Use

The SOC 2 report is intended to meet the needs of a broad range of users that need detailed information and assurance about the controls at a service organization. The report can play an important role in oversight of the organization, vendor management programs, and internal corporate governance and risk management processes.

The report can be distributed to an organization’s stakeholders including user entities, CPAs providing services to such user entities, regulators, and business partners.

AICPA Trust Services Principles

Organizations have the ability to choose one or a combination of the five AICPA Trust Services Criteria depending upon their customer needs:

Security – The system is protected against unauthorized physical and logical access.
Availability – The system is available for operation and used as agreed upon.
Processing Integrity – System processing is complete, accurate, timely and authorized.
Confidentiality – Information designated as confidential is protected as agreed upon.
Privacy – Personal information is collected, used, retained, disclosed, and/or destroyed in accordance with established standards.

Who Needs a SOC 2 Report?

Organizations that should consider a SOC 2 report include Cloud Service Providers (e.g., SaaS, IaaS, PaaS), enterprise systems housing third party data, IT systems management and data center colocation facilities. If you want to communicate your organization’s controls are properly designed, implemented and operating effectively, then the SOC 2 report may be right for you.

Benefits of a SOC 2 Report

Obtaining a SOC 2 report provides assurance to prospective and current clients that you have procedures and controls in place to provide reliable services, which will differentiate your organization during the sales process. Additional benefits include:

Increased trust and transparency with your internal and external stakeholders
Reduced cost of compliance and number of on-site audits
Helps ensure controls are appropriately designed and operating effectively to mitigate risks
Satisfaction of audit requirements

Types of SOC 2 Reports

Type 1 Report

The SOC 2 Type 1 Report (referred to as a point-in-time report), includes an opinion over the suitability of the design of controls at the service organization at a specific point in time. An initial type 1 report often serves as the starting point for subsequent type 2 reviews.

Type 2 Report

The SOC 2 Type 2 Report (referred to a period of time report) includes an opinion over the suitability of the design of controls at the service organization and the operating effectiveness of the controls throughout a specified period of time. This type of report is often issued annually.

Why BARR for SOC Reporting

BARR’s SOC clients report services lead to a 70% reduction in customer compliance questionnaires
SOC clients spend 75% less time spent on internal resources needed to pass audit
Nearly 100% client retention rate

Proven practical, adaptive approach that simplifies SOC reporting processes
Team members serve on task forces responsible for developing SOC reporting standards
Competitive, fixed rates to accommodate growing enterprises