More and more organizations outsource functions to service organizations. These service organizations primarily provide these services out of the cloud. It is essential for organizations and their auditors to control and secure the risks of providing these services out of the cloud. The primary risks are cybersecurity risks, such as phishing, ransomware, or systems attacks. In a System and Organization controls report (SOC) report, external auditors describe and audit the controls managing these risks. A SOC1 report focuses primarily on financial outsourcing risks; a SOC2 report is focused mainly on IT risks.

If you are working for a service organization, a SOC consultant or SOC auditor who is looking to get started with either a SOC 1, SOC 2, SOC 2+, SOC 3, or SOC for cybersecurity) If you are willing to comprehend the SOC2 standard and implement this standard in your organization, then this SOC2 course is for you. This course consists of three parts, divided into five modules; an introduction to understanding the background and basics, the second part focused on the implementation of SOC2 in your organization, and the final part focused on the management of the control system to remain SOC2 compliant. The last part also describes how to prepare for a SOC2 audit effectively and efficiently and provide documentation to the SOC2 auditor.

In the first two modules of this comprehensive course, you learn to understand the background and basics of the SOC2 standard and its implications for an organization. You will know why it is essential for service organizations, customers, and auditors that SOC 2 has become the primary standard for these parties. You will learn to understand the central IT and cybersecurity risks, how to effectively control them, and describe the risks and their control in the SOC report. The standard is based on the following Trust Services Criteria: security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. Depending on its specific business practices, each organization can design controls that follow one or more principles of trust. These internal reports provide organizations and their regulators, business partners, and suppliers with important information about how the organization manages its data.

In the second part, consisting of two modules, you will learn that SOC 2 scoping and readiness an essential element of a SOC2 implementation. You must identify, assess, and confirm several critical measures to ensure a successful SOC 2 audit from beginning to end. In this process, the audit scope in terms of business processes, personnel involved, physical locations, relevant third-party providers, and more need to be decided. Commonly the most crucial area of remediation for SOC 2 compliance is documentation and, more specifically, the preparation of security policies and procedures. This phase might be time-consuming and tedious if these procedures are outdated or don’t reflect the actual processes and controls. During this SOC2 course, you will acquire templates, tips, and effective project management processes to make this phase efficient. In the end, auditors will require the policies and procedures as the first set of deliverables for a SOC2 audit.

Management of IT and cybersecurity risks begins with consistency of procedures and policies and effective documentation is, therefore, essential. As stated, documentation is critical for compliance. The next level is audit preparation and preparation of evidence for the external auditor. This evidence includes screenshots of system settings (including firewall configuration files to baseline server configuration settings and anti-virus settings), memorandums, risk assessment validation, log reports, and emails. You’ll need to engage in an effort of regularly monitoring, assessing, inspecting, and making necessary changes to your controls. This concept is known as “Continuous Monitoring.” And continuous monitoring is essential for remaining consistent and disciplined in following procedures. Further, you will learn what to do if employees do not follow the controls planned and described. You know how to deal with exceptions, find compensating controls and discuss this effectively with your auditor.