Your startup has twelve team members, a functioning SaaS product, and an expanding customer base. Everyone cares about security, but no one has “compliance manager” as a job title. One day, a prospective enterprise customer wants to see a SOC 2 report.
Where do you begin?
For founders researching how to get SOC 2 certification, the answer isn’t to download dozens of policies immediately. The real first step is to make a few decisions that determine what your company needs to document, implement, and prove.
Start by Deciding What Your First Audit Will Cover
Your controls are assessed using the AICPA Trust Services Criteria in a SOC 2 examination. The criteria cover Security, Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity, and Privacy. Security is mandatory. Inclusion of the other categories depends on whether they’re relevant to the organization’s services and commitments. A startup offering a straightforward business application may start with Security alone, provided that scope meets customer expectations.
The applications, infrastructure, employees, and service providers involved should be identified before anyone starts collecting evidence. Making the scope unnecessarily broad creates extra work, but it doesn’t necessarily improve the report’s value.
Pick the SOC 2 Report That Fits Your Timeline
There are two reporting options for people researching how to get SOC 2 certified. Type 1 examines the design of controls at a specified date. Over a defined period, Type 2 examines both the controls’ design and operating effectiveness. If an enterprise customer needs evidence in a hurry, Type 1 may be a useful starting point, assuming the customer accepts it.
Anyone investigating how to get SOC 2 type 2 certification should expect an observation period, commonly three to twelve months, followed by an independent examination. You do not have to complete Type 1 before Type 2. Make sure you know what your customer requires before paying for either examination.
Close the Day-to-Day Security Gaps Before Anything Else
If security controls are linked to everyday business activities, SOC 2 preparation gets more manageable. A sensible place to start is enforcing multi-factor authentication for important accounts, establishing a documented employee offboarding process, and reviewing access permissions on a regular basis.
Developers should keep evidence of production changes and approvals. Risk assessments and relevant supplier reviews should be documented by management. What employees actually do must be described in your policies. A polished procedure offers limited value if nobody follows it.
Organize Evidence Before It Becomes a Problem
Showing that relevant controls exist and, for Type 2, operate consistently is what lies at the core of SOC 2 for saas companies. Expect an auditor to ask when a former employee’s access was removed or whether a production deployment received appropriate approval.
Rebuilding these records months later is much harder than gathering them as activities occur. Through built-in controls, editable policy templates, evidence checklists, and document storage, CertAssist supports small teams manage this work.
No direct integrations with company systems are required. Teams add evidence themselves and can give auditors read-only access.
Understand the Independent Audit Requirement
The outcome of SOC 2 is formally an attestation, not a certification. A licensed CPA firm conducts the examination and issues the SOC 2 report. Nothing replaces the independent auditor, not even compliance software, though it helps prepare and organize evidence.
CertAssist promotes a US$225 monthly promotional subscription covering SOC 2, ISO 27001, and its other supported frameworks. The independent audit is a separate cost. Get an auditor’s quote that reflects your business size, selected criteria, and intended reporting period before budgeting.
Keep the Process Manageable After the First Report
Finishing a SOC 2 examination shouldn’t be the end of your security efforts. Things keep changing: employees join and leave, applications change, and new suppliers arrive. Your controls need to stay relevant.
Assign clear responsibilities, retain evidence throughout the year, and regularly review whether your documented procedures match reality. For a growing startup, that discipline makes future examinations easier while supporting the security expectations of customers who depend on your software.