The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has put some significant new responsibilities and liabilities on data controllers with regard to their use of third-party processors. That means data controllers will face increased requirements for understanding and contractually stipulating the policies and procedures of their processors according to the GDPR.

Well, two of the most commonly sought-after privacy and security frameworks are ISO 27001, GDPR, and SOC 2. But do you know what these processes are? What kinds of information and practices are reviewed within these processes? How can these processes be used for procurement and vendor-management purposes? And, maybe more importantly, who needs SOC 2, ISO 27001, and GDPR?

Compliance Certifications and Regulations

SOC 2

SOC 2 is an information security compliance standard used across the United States, and it is part of a Service Organization Control reporting framework developed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). However, the intent of this standard is to ensure the safety and privacy of organizations’ customer data.

SOC 2 compliance operates on five Trust Services Criteria, which are as follows:

• Security
  
• Availability
  
• Processing Integrity
  
• Confidentiality
  
• Privacy of customer data
  

Hence, it is a framework for safeguarding data. Systems and Organization Controls (SOC) 2 was developed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), and it is a voluntary compliance standard for service providers, which has two types:

• Type I
  
• Type II
  

Generally, a SOC 2 attestation report is issued by external auditors.

Type I Reports

Type I reports evaluate a service organization’s systems and examine whether the selected controls are suitably designed to support the organization’s objectives and principles.

These reports reflect system performance at a specific point in time.

Type II Reports

In addition to the information provided in a Type I report, Type II SOC 2 reports detail the operational effectiveness of these controls.

These reports reflect system performance over a 6–12 month period rather than at a single point in time.

As mentioned earlier, SOC 2 compliance hinges on five Trust Services Criteria – security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. Demonstrating compliance across all five criteria can give an organization a competitive advantage, especially in industries that require higher compliance standards, such as the financial sector.

ISO 27001

This is an internationally recognized standard that calls for an ISMS (Information Security Management System) in an organization. Such a system ensures that the information processed within the organization is administered appropriately.

The ISO 27001 standard lays out the specifications for implementing and managing an ISMS (Information Security Management System). It is an international information security standard that is a more rigorous compliance process and addresses people, processes, and technology.

Hence, the ISO 27001 framework contains best practices chosen from a list of “114 Annex A Controls” that cover all areas of an organization, including organizational issues, human resources, information technology, legal issues, and physical security. These controls are identified and implemented based on a risk assessment.

Based on this, an ISMS security standard ensures the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of important information by addressing security issues across the organization. To obtain ISO 27001 certification, organizations must choose an independent accredited certification body such as SOCLY.io.

How Can SOCLY.io Help You With These Compliances?

Information security and privacy are an inherent part of our values at SOCLY.io. To optimize our information security compliance, we have automated our compliance processes, and a tried and tested framework is also in place to identify and mitigate potential slippages in real time.

These compliances fortify our commitment to “Information Security and Data Privacy” while assuring our customers, partners, and vendors that we adhere to secure information security practices across the board.

In fact, this also means that we take proactive measures to protect any data that is residing with us, and you, as our customers, can sit back and relax knowing that your data is in safe hands with SOCLY.io.

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