Aligned Technology Group is Now SOC 2 Compliant

What is SOC 2 & Why is it important?

SOC 2 or Service Organization Controls 2 is a framework that is governed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). With a SOC 2 audit, an independent service auditor will review an organization’s policies, procedures, and evidence to determine if their controls are designed and operating effectively. A SOC 2 report communicates a company’s commitment to data security and protection of customer information.  

Improving your security posture 

SOC 2 compliance exemplifies an organization’s commitment to their customer’s trust and is a major milestone towards improving their overall security posture. With increasing cybersecurity threats and data breaches, it is paramount that organizations prioritize information security and the protection of their systems and data. By undergoing a SOC 2 audit, our controls and processes were validated by a third-party who attests to the functioning of the controls relevant to our application. 

Why we pursued SOC 2 now

SOC 2 compliance is an integral step in proving to customers, stakeholders, and interested parties that our organization values their trust and has effectively implemented security controls. At our company’s stage, we realized that it was an ideal time to pursue this as it is important to protect data and mitigate potential security risks early and on an ongoing basis. 

Aligned Technology Group’s journey to SOC 2 compliance

Aligned Technology Group is dedicated to building and maintaining trust with our customers, an essential aspect of our business philosophy as we continue to grow. Achieving our SOC 2 Type I certification as of October 10, 2024, exemplifies our ongoing commitment to enhancing our security posture. This certification is more than a milestone; it’s a pledge to protect our customers’ data and to operate with the highest levels of security and compliance. Our goal with SOC 2 compliance is to ensure our customers can rely on our systems and processes for both stability and security. We are committed to annually renewing this certification, keeping security at the forefront of our operational priorities as we support our customers’ cloud journeys​.

Compliance Partners  

• Vanta 

We partnered with Vanta, the leader in the Trust Management space, to help us automate the collection of our audit evidence. Vanta provides us with the strongest security foundation to protect our customer data. 

• Advantage Partners 

Our audit firm, Advantage Partners, was extremely helpful in creating a seamless audit experience. With their guidance and support, we were able to achieve SOC 2 compliance in a swift, efficient manner. 

Process 

While SOC 2 can be a big undertaking, our compliance partners streamlined the process. We leveraged Vanta to integrate our key systems and guide us in implementing policies and procedures to quickly become audit ready. Vanta gave us the direction we needed to pursue our compliance journey. 

Advantage Partners then confirmed our audit readiness and we kicked off our Type [I OR II] audit. For the audit, Advantage evaluated the controls we have in place and opined on their state. Shortly after our audit window ended, Advantage Partners drafted and issued our report. 

Timeline

One key takeaway is understanding that improving our security posture and achieving compliance is a monumental task. This can be made easier with the right compliance partners but it will take dedicated focus and time from your organization. The readiness period can take the most time but we were able to make compliance a priority to get audit ready in a matter of weeks versus months. 

We also found it important to review the audit timeline with Advantage Partners, set an ideal audit date, and then work backwards to be ready in time. However, now that controls are implemented and security is a priority for our team, subsequent SOC 2 audits will be even more seamless. 

Lessons we learned

Focus on improving security posture, not checking boxes

• Compliance is not one size fits all. 

• Security is a continuous project that should be prioritized in an organization. 

Improving security and achieving compliance can help scale your business 

• Vendor security reviews are highly requested in sales cycles and SOC 2 can help unblock that business. 

• Mitigating risk early will protect your business and earn the trust of prospects and customers.

The right partners are key

• Finding a tool to guide you through the process. 

• Partnering with an audit firm that is dedicated to your success.