Why SOC II Compliance Is Necessary

The most common concern customers have about migrating their eDiscovery into the cloud is data vulnerability. With a vendor that is SOC II Type 2 compliant, you can rest assured that your data will be handled with the best care. 

This enterprise-level of compliance ensures all electronically stored information (ESI) is stored, processed, and transmitted with the utmost security measures in place. 

SOC II Type 2 compliance not only secures data, but eases procedural and governance pain points with top tier data management and processing policies. 

Read on to explore SOC compliance and its new found necessity in our ever-digitizing world. 

SOC Compliance: The Basics

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) set forth a series of standards by which service organizations, such as eDiscovery SaaS companies, must meet in order to achieve security compliance certification. 

The AICPA developed the internationally recognized System and Organization Controls (SOC) assessment to evaluate how well an eDiscovery vendor protects clients’ sensitive and confidential information using five distinct Trust Services Criteria:

• Security -  Protect information and systems from modification, damage and unauthorized access.

• Availability - Ensure accessibility to all necessary custodians at any time.

• Confidentiality - Protect confidential information and address how a vendor collects, stores, and disposes of confidential information.

• Processing Integrity - Ensure information is processed accurately and in a timely manner.

• Privacy - Protect private information and address how a vendor collects, stores, and disposes of private and personal information.

These 5 Trust Services Criteria are used across all three SOC reports. 

SOC I Reporting

SOC I reports evaluate a vendor’s internal control specifically over financial reporting, how well a vendor protects clients’ financial information, and whether the vendor meets the requirements for financial controls.

SOC II Reporting

SOC II reports evaluate a vendor’s general control and how well a vendor ensures compliance with the five Trust Services Criteria. These reports are incredibly detailed for limited distribution and tend to focus on technology and cloud computing compliance. SOC II audits must be performed by a third-party to grant SOC II compliance certification.

There are two types of SOC II compliance: Type 1 and Type 2.

SOC II Type 1

Type 1 reports evaluate how well a vendor’s eDiscovery platform is designed to comply with specific Trust Services Criteria at a specific moment in time. 

SOC II Type 2

SOC II Type 2 compliance is the gold standard in eDiscovery defensibility. Type 2 reports evaluate how well a vendor’s platform is designed to comply with Trust Services Criteria as well as the effectiveness of those controls over a long period of time—usually 6 months to a year.

SOC III Reporting

SOC III reports evaluate the same controls and effectiveness of those controls as SOC II reports. However, SOC III reports differ from SOC II because they are written with less detail for a more general distribution.

Certification for any type of SOC compliance can take several months to acquire and requires auditing performed by a certified public accountant (CPA) to issue a report.

SOC II and eDiscovery: A Litigator’s Dream Team

SOC II Type 2 compliance for eDiscovery solutions allow for a plethora of benefits for your legal teams and your clients, including:

• Data management - It ensures relevant ESI is properly managed and stored in cloud solutions. You’ll know exactly where your data is, who is managing it, and how they are doing so.

• Security Risks - Your eDiscovery data is in the most secure hands and is well protected against security breaches, malware, viruses, and even ransomware. This also saves your reputation from irreparable damage and highlights areas of improvement for defensibility.

Ask your vendor about their SOC compliance. If they are unable to provide a recent report that certifies their SOC II Type 2 compliance, find a new provider.

Venio Systems’ end-to-end, fully integrated eDiscovery platform is SOC II Type 2 compliant. Our latest compliance report was issued in March 2022, making our technology as up to date as possible to cater to all your eDiscovery needs.

Compare our compliance with the Top 5 eDiscovery Software Vendor Comparison Chart and schedule a demonstration with our team to experience the best-in-class security today!