SOC 2 Compliance Requirements: Explained

🎯 What This Guide Covers

• What SOC 2 compliance really means

• The 5 Trust Services Criteria (TSC)

• Required documentation and evidence

• Technical and organizational control areas

• Tools to streamline compliance

• Policy and process requirements

• How to prepare for an audit

🧠 What Is SOC 2 Compliance?

SOC 2 is a voluntary compliance framework governed by the AICPA. It focuses on how organizations handle customer data based on 5 Trust Services Criteria (TSC):

1. Security

2. Availability

3. Processing Integrity

4. Confidentiality

5. Privacy

At its core, SOC 2 answers:

"Can we trust you to secure and manage our data responsibly - not just once, but continuously?"

🔐 The 5 Trust Services Criteria (TSC)

TSC	Required?	Description
Security	✅ Mandatory	Protect systems from unauthorized access and changes
Availability	Optional	Ensure systems are up, monitored, and maintained
Processing Integrity	Optional	Ensure systems perform their intended function reliably
Confidentiality	Optional	Protect sensitive info like source code, contracts, PII
Privacy	Optional	Govern data collection, storage, and deletion under consent

Most startups begin with Security only. Other criteria are added based on industry.

📑 Key Documentation You Must Have

Category	Documents You'll Need
Policies	Access Control, Security Awareness, Acceptable Use, Change Mgmt
Processes	Onboarding/offboarding, incident response, vendor reviews
Logs & Evidence	Audit trails, training logs, access reviews, restore tests
Risk Management	Risk register, asset inventory, impact analysis

🛡️ Core Control Areas for SOC 2

Identity & Access Management

• MFA enforced on all systems

• Role-based access control (RBAC)

• Quarterly access reviews signed by managers

Infrastructure Security

• Secure cloud config (S3 public off, VPC, security groups)

• Regular patch management

• CI/CD security gates (SAST, dependency scanning)

Monitoring & Logging

• Centralized logging (e.g., CloudTrail, Datadog, Panther)

• SIEM rules for unauthorized access, privilege escalations

• Incident detection and documented response procedures

Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery

• Backup job logs with restore drill reports

• Business impact analysis

• Recovery Time Objective (RTO) and Recovery Point Objective (RPO) defined

Vendor & Third-Party Risk

• Vendor security questionnaire completed

• Contractual obligations (DPAs, SLAs)

• Periodic re-assessment of critical vendors

⚙️ Tools That Make It Easier

Area	Tools
GRC	Drata, Vanta, Secureframe
IAM	Okta, Azure AD, Google Workspace
Logging	AWS CloudTrail, Datadog, Panther
HRIS	Rippling, BambooHR, Gusto
Asset Mgmt	Jamf, Kandji, Intune
Backup	AWS Backup, Veeam, Backblaze

📋 Policies You Must Maintain

• Access Control Policy

• Acceptable Use Policy

• Security Awareness & Training Policy

• Change Management Policy

• Data Retention and Deletion Policy

• Incident Response Policy

• Vendor Management Policy

All policies must:

• Be version-controlled

• Reviewed annually

• Acknowledged by all employees

✅ Audit Readiness Checklist

Requirement	Status
MFA enabled across cloud and SaaS systems	☐
Quarterly access reviews documented	☐
Policies approved and acknowledged	☐
Incident response test completed	☐
Backup and restore tests verified	☐
Vendor assessments with DPAs signed	☐
Employee onboarding/offboarding tracked	☐
Asset inventory up-to-date	☐

📎 Final Thoughts

SOC 2 compliance isn't just about checking boxes. It's about:

• Reducing real security risks

• Building buyer confidence

• Closing deals faster

• Making security operational - not just aspirational

Ready to prepare for a real audit? Let's build your evidence and checklist library.

See also: Best Practices for CPS 234 Incident Response in Australia