Almost everything is on the cloud today. Organizations prefer to outsource business operations to third-party service providers for improved efficiencies and cost control. On the other hand, if organizational data is mishandled, businesses are susceptible to attacks. SOC 2 compliance reports give organizations additional insights into their information security posture. It is also used by companies to assure customers and stakeholders that the service providers (e.g, SaaS companies) value security and are committed to protecting the organization’s interests, as well as customer privacy.
In this article, we share how mobile device management (MDM) can play a significant role in supporting organizations in achieving a SOC 2 compliance report.
What is SOC 2 Compliance?
One thing to keep in mind: SOC 2 is not an upgraded version of SOC 1. Unlike SOC 1, which reports on controls about financial statements, SOC 2 is based on the Trust Services Criteria of security, availability, integrity, confidentiality, and processing integrity. SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) is a voluntary compliance standard for service organizations, developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts (AICPA), which specifies how organizations should manage data. SOC 2 is not a certification. It is an audit opinion report on internal controls related to Information Technology.
Within the report, the organization asserts that certain controls are in place to meet the applicable SOC 2 requirements. An expert panel (external auditor from a licensed CPA firm) reviews all related policies and procedures. After examination, the auditor provides an opinion on their agreement with the organization’s assertion of whether the controls are designed and operated appropriately.
This is the only way organizations can receive an official SOC 2 report. There are two types of SOC 2 reports:
- SOC 2 Type 1 report (also written as SOC 2 Type I) describes the controls provided by the provider organization and attests that the controls are suitably defined and implemented.
- SOC 2 Type 2 report (also written as SOC 2 Type II) details the operational efficiency of the controls over a minimum 6-month period.
The SOC 2 report provides organizations and their regulators, business partners, and suppliers with important information about how the organization manages its data.
Why Should Organizations be SOC 2 Compliant?
For any organization—especially if it is preparing for growth—gaining customer trust is crucial to building revenue. Thus, customers will always assess the risk of working with providers. Obtaining compliance alleviates most commonly raised concerns, including “Is our company’s information secure?”, followed by “How can you be sure?”
Receiving compliance from an independent attestation declares that an organization has strong security controls in place to protect customer data. And it is just not about achieving compliance. Maintaining compliance is equally significant to protecting business information. Continuous monitoring and implementation of the right controls post-compliance are important to operating the business securely.
Read – The Role of Mobile Device Management in Compliance
Benefits of SOC 2 Compliance
For the organization
- It acts as an Independent Assurance over controls operated by the provider to which your organization has outsourced a segment of your business.
- You get an in-depth report of the processes and controls in place at the provider end.
- Your organization gets articulated controls that need to be performed when working with the provider.
- Insights into control gaps as highlighted in the SOC 2 report.
For the service provider
- Undergo one audit report and share the report with multiple customers, reducing time spent with individual auditors.
- Gives the ability to integrate with other frameworks over IT controls and governance, such as Cobit and ISO 27001.
- Teams across the provider organization gain more insights into risk, governance, and internal control.
How Does MDM Help With SOC 2 Compliance?
Out of the Five Trust Services Criteria, the Security Trust Principle is non-negotiable. Your organization will need to demonstrate that the controls satisfy your infrastructure’s security needs. A robust mobile device management solution can satisfy a multitude of security, privacy, and confidentiality principles.
Here are some scenarios where Scalefusion MDM helps to be compliant.
| Trust Principle | How Scalefusion MDM Helps |
|---|---|
| Security | Password management: Companies can prevent unauthorized access to unattended mobile devices. Scalefusion MDM allows you to make passwords mandatory and define length, complexity, and history. Data encryption: If bad actors have physical access to a mobile device, a password alone won’t be sufficient to protect data. You can initiate BitLocker and FileVault for Windows and Mac devices, respectively. BYOD management: You can create separate work and personal profiles with the same device using containerization. It separates work data and apps, which ensures data protection and provides user privacy. Incident response and remediation: In case a mobile device is compromised, you can use the Scalefusion MDM to lock the device remotely. The device cannot be used until the necessary password is added. If the device is lost and unretrievable, you can remotely wipe all company data from the device. Network data security: Configure VPN for each device to ensure secure access to corporate information. |
| Privacy | It is critical that organizations protect without violating workers’ privacy. With Scalefusion, you can- -Distinguish personal data from corporate data -Ensure ethical remote control of device data -Stay compliant with applicable laws and regulations To ensure companies do not access Personally Identifiable Information (PII), you can apply containerization policies on personal devices. |
| Confidentiality | Maintaining data confidentiality means restricting access to individuals based on role, authority, and need. You can use MDM to create device groups to share sensitive data with the correct audience. |
Wrapping Up
The popularity of mobile devices in the workplace makes mobile device management an important tool to achieve SOC 2 compliance. If you are planning for a SOC 2 audit, try Scalefusion MDM to support your compliance efforts. Ask for a 14-day free trial today.
Scalefusion is a SOC 2 Type 2 compliant mobile device management solution.
