How long does it take to get SOC 2 compliance?

Let’s take a look at the steps to the SOC 2 certification process and then discuss the typical SOC 2 certification timeline:

• Decide whether a type I or type II report is fitting for your company. (You can see more details about the SOC 2 reports here.)
• Determine which of the Trust Services Criteria you wish to include. (There are obligatory criteria and voluntary inclusions.)
• Determine the scope of your audit (and now is the appropriate time to determine your timeframe).
• Conduct a thorough gap analysis.
• Remediate and mitigate any discovered gaps.
• Create your final report with all your documentation and evidence.
• Begin the audit with the official auditor.

The most time consuming part of the audit is the preparation: the collection of evidence, the gap analysis, remediation and organization of documentation. You don’t want to officially begin an audit and then start scrambling to get everything together- this is the likeliest way to fail the audit. Once all of your remediating controls are in place, your policies are in order, and you have a firm grasp on the whereabouts of all supporting documentation- this is the time to begin the official audit.

The audit phase takes approximately 3 months, adjustable according to the scope of your audit and how many controls are included. 

Preparing for the audit typically takes 12 months but can be significantly reduced by using compliance automation tools as part of an automated GRC platform that will shave significant time and hassle off of the entire process. Automated compliance tools will allow you to complete all your preparation in a fraction of the time. Here’s how to become SOC 2 compliant using the benefits of the Centraleyes automated compliance platform:

• Collect and store evidence from all over your company at the click of a button, 
• Take advantage of full visibility and maximize accountability throughout the process,
• Assign tasks to specific team members and track their progress
• Locate gaps and activate gap analysis
• Use active scanning tools for the full picture
• Ensure no controls or relevant tasks are missed
• Remove guesswork from remediation tasks (as they are automatically generated by the platform) and close those gaps
• Automatically organize all the evidence and generate sharp relevant reports
• Audit dashboard to easily identify issues, have full comprehension of where your audit is holding at all times, and continuously track progress in real-time.
• Present your auditor with clear, organized materials, evidence and reports.

Centraleyes allows customers full control and comprehensive automated tools to successfully soar through their SOC2 audits.