Your startup counts twelve team members, a live SaaS product, and a growing customer base. No one on the team holds “compliance manager” in their job title, even though security matters. A potential enterprise customer suddenly requests a SOC 2 report.
What should you do next?
For founders researching how to get SOC 2 certification, the answer isn’t to download dozens of policies immediately. The better move is to make a few choices that determine what your company needs to document, put in place, and prove.
Start by Defining Your Audit Scope
Your controls are evaluated against the AICPA Trust Services Criteria in a SOC 2 examination. There are five areas: Security, Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity, and Privacy. Among them, only Security is required. Whether the other categories are included depends on whether they’re relevant to the organization’s services and commitments. As long as that scope meets customer expectations, a startup offering a straightforward business application may start with Security alone.
Before you collect any evidence, identify the applications, infrastructure, employees, and service providers involved. A needlessly broad scope brings additional work without necessarily improving the report’s usefulness.
Type 1 vs. Type 2? Let the Deadline Choose
There are two reporting options for anyone searching for how to get SOC 2 certified. The design of controls at a specified date is what Type 1 covers. Type 2 goes further, examining both design and operating effectiveness over a defined period. Type 1 may be a useful starting point when an enterprise customer needs evidence quickly, provided the customer accepts it.
For businesses researching how to get SOC 2 type 2 certification, the process includes an observation period, usually three to twelve months, followed by an independent examination. Type 1 isn’t a mandatory prerequisite for Type 2. Before paying for either examination, confirm your customer’s requirements.
Start With Day-to-Day Security Gaps
Tying security controls to ordinary business activities helps make SOC 2 preparation easier to manage. For example, enforce multi-factor authentication for important accounts, create a documented employee offboarding process, and review access permissions on a regular basis.
Evidence of production changes and approvals should be retained by development teams. Leadership should document risk assessments and relevant supplier reviews. Actual employee practice needs to be described in your policies. There is limited value in a well-written procedure that no one follows.
Organize Evidence Before It Becomes a Problem
Demonstrating that relevant controls exist and, for Type 2, operate consistently is what lies at the core of SOC 2 for saas companies. You might be asked for records showing when a former employee’s access was removed or whether a production deployment received appropriate approval.
Collecting these records as activities occur is much easier than reconstructing them months afterward. CertAssist helps small teams structure this work with built-in controls, editable policy templates, evidence checklists, and document storage.
The platform does not require direct integrations with company systems. Teams upload evidence themselves and can give auditors read-only access.
Understand What the Independent Audit Requires
SOC 2 is formally an attestation, not a certification. The examination is conducted by a licensed CPA firm, which issues the SOC 2 report. Compliance software can help prepare and organize evidence, but it can’t replace the independent auditor.
A US$225 monthly promotional subscription that covers SOC 2, ISO 27001, and its other supported frameworks is offered by CertAssist. Fees for the independent audit are separate. Before budgeting, ask for an auditor’s quote based on your business size, selected criteria, and intended reporting period.
Keep the Process Manageable After Your First Report
A completed SOC 2 examination shouldn’t mark the end of your security activities. Your operations keep changing: employees join and leave, applications change, and new suppliers arrive. It’s important that your controls remain relevant.
Define 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.