What is a SOC 3?
System and Organization Controls 3 reports, also known as a SOC 3 report, is one of three audits that organizations can undertake to meet the specified Trust Service Principles, as defined by the AICPA. The audit is performed by accredited organizations, with the main goal of assisting companies in assessing possible risks to security, availability, integrity, privacy, and confidentiality of information.
SOC 3 compliance audits are performed by an accredited third party to assess the current risks and posed threats that the organization may face.
The main advantage of the SOC 3 versus the SOC 1 or SOC 2, is that the output of the SOC 3 audit can be freely published or provided to any third party organization. The SOC 3 report is generalized so that it doesn’t provide any confidential information. However, the report generated is still invaluable for an organization looking for insights on their current security and control landscape.
How Do I Market a SOC 3 Report?
Although SOC 1, 2, 3 are all governed by AICPA standards, only the SOC 3 is allowed to be made publicly available. As we have already established, the information from the SOC 3 is a general overview provided by an auditor. It provides the data on the organization’s controls and security and testing methodology.
A SOC 2 report is not openly available. This type of report contains specifics about how the audit was performed, how to fix security issues, and other sensitive information. A SOC 3 is a preview of what a SOC 2 report contains.
Since the SOC 3 version doesn’t contain any confidential information it can be published on the company’s website. Both current and potential customers can freely access it. The SOC 3 can help boost your company’s credibility and help you to gain the trust of new clients.
What Are the Benefits of a SOC 3 Report?
Though a SOC 2 audit must be performed before a SOC 3, it’s well worth the time and effort. In today’s age of daily cyberattacks, potential customers look for cyber security-conscious services.
As long as the report is produced by experts in the industry who are AICPA-accredited like TrustNet, there many benefits to businesses who publish this type of report, including:
- Evidence that your business properly invests in security measures
- Shows customers that you’re transparent about your practices
- Outperforms competitors who haven’t had a third-party evaluation
- Helps to build trust with both new and old clients
- A positive report demonstrates you have a professional team
- Reassures customers that your prices won’t increase if there are new security threats
- In short, this type of report confirms your business professionalism. Additionally, it shows that your business cares enough about clients to ensure that their current and future data is kept safe from cybercriminals.
- From the business’s perspective, it’s a yearly investment for long-term client retention and allows you to market and sell to new potential clients. They can also let anyone view the report without worrying about it being leaked.
How Can a SOC 3 Report Be Used to Build a Business?
While it can feel overwhelming to prepare your business for a SOC 3 audit, the process is not difficult. TrustNet has professionals who perform SOC 3 audits and will work with your business to ensure that it succeeds the first time.
The report you obtain from this audit can quickly build up a business. Keep in mind that you will first need to obtain a SOC 2 report; this is the report on which the auditor will base your SOC 3.
Once you have a successful audit, it can be published anywhere or sent to your clients directly. This will help keep current customers from wandering off to less-trusted competitors.
New security-conscious clients will be looking for a company that meets AICPA standards. A published SOC 3 report will provide that for you and will not only help you to retain clients but to generate new ones as well.