Your startup counts twelve employees, a live SaaS product, and a growing customer base. Nobody at the company holds “compliance manager” in their job title, although security is important. Soon, a prospective enterprise customer requests a SOC 2 report.
What exactly should you do first?
For founders researching how to get SOC 2 certification, the first step is not to collect dozens of policies immediately. What matters is to make a few choices that define what your company needs to document, put in place, and prove.
Decide What Your First SOC 2 Audit Should Cover
SOC 2 measures controls against the AICPA Trust Services Criteria. There are five areas: Security, Availability, Confidentiality, Processing Integrity, and Privacy. Of these, only Security is required. Include the remaining categories only when they’re relevant to the organization’s services and commitments. A startup running a straightforward business application may start with Security alone, as long as that scope meets customer expectations.
The applications, infrastructure, employees, and service providers involved should be identified before collecting evidence. A needlessly broad scope adds additional work without necessarily increasing the report’s usefulness.
Choose the Report That Matches Your Deadline
Anybody asking how to get SOC 2 certified quickly finds two reporting options. Type 1 looks at the design of controls as of a specified date. Over a defined period, Type 2 examines both the controls’ design and operating effectiveness. When an enterprise customer needs evidence fast, Type 1 can be a practical starting point, if the customer accepts it.
For businesses investigating how to get SOC 2 type 2 certification, the process includes an observation period, commonly three to twelve months, followed by an independent examination. Type 2 does not depend on completing Type 1 first. Check your customer’s requirements before paying for either examination.
Begin With Day-to-Day Security Basics
When security controls are connected to ordinary business activities, SOC 2 preparation gets more manageable. Good first steps include enforcing multi-factor authentication for important accounts, creating a documented employee offboarding process, and reviewing access permissions on a regular basis.
Retain evidence of production changes and approvals within the development team. Document risk assessments and relevant supplier reviews at the management level. Write policies so they describe what employees actually do. When nobody follows it, even a beautifully written procedure has limited value.
Organize Evidence Before It Becomes a Problem
Showing that relevant controls exist and, for Type 2, operate consistently is what lies at the core of SOC 2 for saas companies. An auditor may well ask when a former employee’s access was removed or whether a production deployment received appropriate approval.
It’s much easier to collect these records as activities occur than to rebuild them months afterward. Through built-in controls, editable policy templates, evidence checklists, and document storage, CertAssist supports small teams manage this work.
The platform does not require direct integrations with company systems. Teams upload evidence themselves and can give auditors read-only access.
Why You Still Need an Independent Auditor
The outcome of SOC 2 is formally an attestation, not a certification. The examination is performed by a licensed CPA firm, which then issues the SOC 2 report. Compliance software can help prepare and organize evidence, but it cannot replace the independent auditor.
CertAssist offers a US$225 monthly promotional subscription covering SOC 2, ISO 27001, and its other supported frameworks. The independent audit is a separate expense. Before budgeting, ask for an auditor’s quote based on your business size, selected criteria, and intended reporting period.
Keep the Process Manageable After Your First Report
Security work shouldn’t stop when the SOC 2 examination is completed. Your operations keep changing: employees join and leave, applications change, and new suppliers appear. Your controls need to remain relevant.
Define clear responsibilities, retain evidence throughout the year, and regularly review whether your documented procedures match reality. This discipline helps make future examinations easier as a startup grows, while also supporting the security expectations of customers who depend on your software.