SOC Assessments and Audits

SOC Attestations

SOC Stands For Service Organization Controls, And Are Standards Designed To Assist Service Organizations Imparting Services To Their Clients And Customers. It Helps To Build Confidence And Trust Between The Entities And The Service Provider.

SOC Assessment And Audit Reports Are Classified Depending On Their Usage And Service Controls.

SOC 1

SOC 1 pertains to ICFR i.e., Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Under this standard, reporting is done over the controls of service organization over its end user’s financial reporting. This is classified under two categories Type 1 reporting & Type 2 reporting

• Type 1 Report: Reporting focuses on the suitability of the design of controls of a financial organization and the related objectives on a specified date.
• Type 2 Report: Reporting focuses on the suitability of the effectiveness of controls of a financial organization to achieve the related objective throughout the specified period.

SOC 2

SOC 2 reporting is concerned for Service Organization’s Trust Services Criteria (TSC). It defines controls necessary at a service organization that are relevant to Security, Processing Integrity, Privacy, Availability etc.

TSC reporting is required to confer to the board category if controls that are necessary to adhere by the service organization’s systems in terms of security, availability, and processing integrity. SOC 2 reports are also classified under two categories namely:

• Type 1 Report: Reporting focuses on the suitability of the design of controls of a service organization and the related objectives on a specified date.
• Type 2 Report: Reporting focuses on the suitability of the effectiveness of controls of a service organization to achieve the related objective throughout the specified period.

SOC 3

SOC 3 reporting is done in line with SOC 2 reporting, with the only difference that SOC 3 reporting is meant for general use or for customers who need assurances regarding the necessary controls maintained and managed by the organization.

SOC 3 reports can be freely distributed while SOC 1 & SOC 2 reports are meant to be restricted in distribution.

 

SOC Audits Process

QRC has been fore-runner in providing assessment and advisory services in Governance, Risk and Compliance. And as your compliance partner, will assist you in providing:

• SOC Advisory Services
• SOC Assessments

The assessment and certification approach is based on a defined SOCs metrics, and based on our findings, we would provide a compliance report for:

• Overview of the organization
• Vendor management programs
• Internal corporate governance and risk management processes
• Regulatory overview

 

Benefits Of SOC Assessments

• Verifying that your organization has the proper internal controls and processes in place to deliver high quality services to your clients.
• Evaluating your policies and procedures, which are crucial to the operability of your organization.
• Assuring clients that their sensitive data is protected, building trust between service providers and user organizations.
• Removing the internal blinders; personnel often can’t or don’t want to see vulnerabilities that an experienced auditor does.
• Strengthening your environment, and teaching you ways to mature your practices.
• Giving you a competitive advantage by demonstrating your commitment to security.