SOC compliance is a very important framework for the management of cybersecurity threats in any organization. It is a requirement in nearly all sectors of activity that are faced with cybersecurity threats. Its implementation is not simple and straightforward, but rather a complex process with stringent requirements that need careful review and addressing.
The goal of SOC is to ensure that your systems are secure, reliable and properly managed so that the customer and company data is safe from cybercriminals and hackers. The process may seem overwhelming but once implemented, it can generate a lot of value for your company.
Here are 4 benefits of SOC compliance:
1. Builds credibility with Banks, Business Partners, and Potential Investors
It is not uncommon for banks to have high standards when it comes to financing requirements, which is where SOC compliance comes into play. When your business is SOC compliant, it demonstrates that you have an adequate management of your cybersecurity risks and provides evidence that your company is committed to mitigating any potential threats. This means that you are much more likely to be approved for financing, as meeting the SOC requirements is often a prerequisite for most banks.
But it is not only about banks. Many providers such as insurance companies or technology providers may also require your business to be SOC compliant before they are willing to work with you. Many companies may also require that you comply with the framework as a condition for your business partnership.
Being SOC compliant allows you to establish trust with potential partners, banks, and potential investors. Once they realize that you are SOC compliant, they will know that your company is credible, and they may not even require any additional information regarding your security. They will be willing to work with you with little to no hassle.
Simply put, being SOC compliant means you open the gates to more business opportunities, ensuring a direct return on your investment.
2. Helps you focus on innovation rather than security
Security is not a core function of your organization. Having to worry about security issues can distract you from the core functions of your business and you may end up spending a large amount of your resources inefficiently to mitigate your risks.
The SOC framework ensures that you’ve implemented strong cybersecurity management practices, protecting your critical data and infrastructure from any potential incidents. Being SOC compliant means you’ve secured your data from those who might want to steal and sell it to malicious actors on the dark web. It also protects your intellectual property and trade secrets from being spread publicly.
This means that once your company is SOC compliant, you’ll be sure that you’ve mitigated most of your cybersecurity risks so you can get the peace of mind to focus your resources on innovation rather than on security.
3. Gives you an edge over your competitors
In today’s technological world, no company is safe from security breaches, and this applies to companies all over the world regardless of their sizes. However, having strong security measures in place demonstrates to your customers and business partners that you’ve taken the necessary precautions to protect their sensitive data from being leaked or sold to malicious actors. This means that the SOC framework gives you a competitive edge over your competitors who might not be SOC compliant.
This also puts your company on a pedestal against competitors who might have faced a cybersecurity incident in the past. You will be able to establish trust with their customers and business partners right away and reassure their concerns where your competitors might have failed.
These strong security measure put in place also will also protect your intellectual property and commercial trade secrets from being sold on the dark web, ensuring that your assets are protected from industrial espionage. This way, you will always remain a few steps ahead of your competitors.
4. Helps prevent financial losses
One of the remarkable benefits of SOC compliance is that it will enable your company to come up with clearly defined procedures and policies that govern key controls and processes surrounding your business operations. Such policies and procedures will help to avoid unnecessary fines that may result from privacy law breaches and non-compliance following a cybersecurity incident.
A strong management of your security will also limit the financial impact that a cyberattack could have on your company, by restricting its potential impact on your assets and operations. This will help you limit the resources spent on technical restoration, incident response and to recover any lost data or damaged infrastructure following any incident.
Limiting any potential impact of these incidents will also play a great part in keeping your reputation intact following an attack, this limiting any financial impact caused by customer turnovers. The reputational damage that result from a data breach cost American companies $4.13 million USD on average per breach in 2017, which is infinitely more expensive than complying with the SOC requirements.
Final thoughts
In the light of the four benefits raised above, it is quite evident that your company should consider SOC compliance. If you are a start-up, you may be tempted to delay its implementation, but you need to remember that cybercriminals are not sleeping. They are always looking for ways to exploit your company for their malicious purposes.
Starting early is good because it is easier to meet the requirements when your company still has few employees and few departments. If you wait until your company grows, the process will get much more complicated and expensive. Another advantage of starting early is that your company will grow in an environment with strengthened controls that will help make compliance assessments faster and easier to perform in future, no matter how big the company shall have grown.
