What Is SOC 2 Compliance, and Does Your SaaS Business Need It?

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Key Takeaways You might be asked if you’re SOC 2 compliant by potential customers.

The process of becoming compliant can be costly and time-consuming.

If your business isn’t ready yet, there are four things you can do now to reassure prospective clients.

It usually starts with one email. A customer you’ve been courting for weeks writes back: “Before we move forward — are you SOC 2 compliant?”

Then another customer asks. Then their purchasing department sends a security questionnaire with 200 questions and a deadline. You start Googling, and within an hour you’ve learned that getting compliant costs $20,000 or more once you add up auditors, software, consultants and your own time.

So: What is this thing, and do you need it? (Spoiler: You probably don’t)

What is SOC 2?

SOC (system and organization controls) is a reporting framework designed to evaluate the level of data management and security, and “SOC 2” is its version for SaaS companies.

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