The SOC reporting process is a formal, independent examination of your organization’s internal controls. It determines whether your documented policies and procedures are
Your customers, partners, and regulators require independent assurance. While GRC automation tools are excellent for internal preparation, they cannot issue the official attestation required for compliance. A formal SOC engagement has several benefits, including providing a verified stamp of approval that accelerates sales cycles, uncovering gaps in your operational and security controls before they become liabilities, prevents you from losing ground to competitors who already maintain valid SOC reports. This examination is critical for organizations that handle sensitive customer information. The resulting SOC report provides objective assurance that your service is designed and operating effectively to protect the data of your user entities.
To complete your SOC assessment, you must undergo an independent assessment performed by a licensed firm. The process involves systematically aligning your technical controls with AICPA standards, gathering "Body of Evidence," and submitting it to a formal review. Auditwerx guides you through this journey with our "hands-on" preparation method to eliminate guesswork.
If your organization has already achieved compliance or is working towards compliance with another security framework, you are likely closer to SOC 2® compliance than you think. Reporting on multiple frameworks during one examination can save you time and money.
SOC 1® / ISO 27001: Technical controls related to IT operations, physical security, change management, and user access that satisfy SOC 1® requirements or ISO standards can be directly mapped to the mandatory Security criterion (and often Availability and Processing Integrity) in your SOC 2® report.
PCI DSS: Controls related to network segmentation, vulnerability management, and restricted access to cardholder data can significantly contribute to satisfying the TSC.
If you are new to the SOC reporting process, consider these foundational questions before starting your journey. Answering these is the single greatest factor in controlling your total assessment cost and timeline.
If you are unsure of the answers, Auditwerx can conduct a Readiness Assessment to map your path forward.
SOC 1® for financial controls, SOC 2® for security/privacy, or SOC 3® for general distribution?
Scoping correctly prevents you from applying controls to systems that don't need them.
If it isn't documented, it didn't happen. Do you have formal policies and procedures?
Ensure your partner is a licensed firm—software vendors alone cannot issue the final report.
For Type 2, do you have 6–12 months of evidence showing controls are functioning?
We identify key stakeholders, define your assessment boundary, and establish the services in scope. For first-time reporters, this phase includes an initial readiness gap analysis.
We provide templates and share assessment plans early. This allows your team to compile supporting documentation and upload it to our secure Engagement Management Platform (EMP) well before fieldwork begins.
Whether through traditional on-site fieldwork or our secure virtual assessment technology, we conduct walkthroughs and test controls. Our goal is to complete 95% of documentation requirements during this phase to prevent reporting delays.
Our strict quality control process involves manager and partner-level reviews of your draft report. We will collaborate with you on feedback before the final seal of completion is issued for your website.
Choosing Auditwerx for your SOC journey gives you a competitive edge. We don’t just “check boxes,” we prepare you for the scrutiny of an official assessment.
We are proud to be an independent firm with no conflicts of interest in completing your report.
We focus only on controls and evidence that will score points in the final assessment.
Partner with a single firm throughout your entire compliance lifecycle. Our findings are objective and have no conflicts of interest.
Our U.S. based team of assessment professionals are never outsourced.
200+ years of collective experience translates to the most efficient path to certification, saving you time and money.
We offer flexible integration with leading GRC tools, so you don't have to duplicate evidence.
SOC 1® reports focus on controls relevant to a user entity’s financial reporting (ICFR). SOC 2® reports focus on the “Trust Services Criteria” (security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy) relevant to IT and data services.
A SOC 2®+ engagement allows you to map your existing SOC 2® controls to additional regulatory frameworks, such as HIPAA or HITRUST. It consolidates your compliance narrative into one verified report.
Yes. Because they share roughly 80% of the same controls, Auditwerx specializes in dual-track engagements that allow you to achieve both standards in a single, efficient assessment cycle.
Automated platforms provide helpful internal dashboards, but they cannot issue an independent report. We provide the “objective evidence” and professional validation required by enterprise procurement and legal teams.
The timeline depends on your complexity, scope, and whether you are performing a Type 1 (point-in-time) or Type 2 (period-of-time) report. We customize our roadmap to fit your specific operational goals.
…Both operations and assessment teams executed the engagement flawlessly, on-time and on-budget. The Auditwerx team provided us with the necessary guidance, tools and knowledge...We would highly recommend Auditwerx services to organizations of all sizes and requirement complexities.
...Their team has brought a level of knowledge and professionalism that has been unmatched. Our company is required to undergo a number of assessments annually with various firms and Auditwerx has truly been a pleasure to work with...
...The assessment itself was thorough, but non-disruptive. The team was highly professional and very knowledgeable. We recommend Auditwerx...without reservation.
As part of your overall compliance and assurance strategy, we offer examinations for the entire SOC report family. We can help you determine which report is right for your user base, whether they require financial assurance (SOC 1®) or security and operational assurance (SOC 2® and SOC 3®).
Identifies control gaps and provides a roadmap before the formal examination begins, saving time and money.
Assurance for financial systems like payroll, claims, or loan processing.
Assurance over core technology, security, and operational controls (common for SaaS, hosting, and data centers).
Expands the SOC 2® report to include testing against other compliance frameworks simultaneously.
Experienced partners and professional staff of our firm conduct quality control reviews of our assessments. Our partners’ work is reviewed annually, and the inspection process includes periodic testing of the effectiveness of our quality controls and a continuous improvement program. This risk-based annual inspection is intended to mimic the triennial peer review described in the following paragraph and are performed on completed engagements.
In addition to this inspection, we perform in-process, “pre-issuance” reviews of partners’ work that are chosen for using a risk-based selection process; these reviews are performed by our corporate quality control team. The combination of the in-process and completed engagements is part of our continuous improvement processes.
Our virtual assessment process combines minimal hardware, collaborative software, and cameras to allow us to perform all or part of our assessment engagement virtually and in real time. This is neither a “remote assessment” nor a “desk review,” both of which often involve electronic file transfers and little interaction with management. Instead, the virtual assessment includes dialogue with process owners virtually, captures and shares information electronically, and integrates technology seamlessly. We also offer the possibility of performing a hybrid assessment, whereby we reduce our on-site presence by supplementing it with virtual resources.
Our goal is to provide you with the same high-quality assessment services through more focused planning, with reduced distraction, and at a more cost-effective price point. Our virtual assessment process provides you with more access to our specialists involved in your evaluation – regardless of your location.
Auditwerx utilizes a web-based, third-party, Engagement Management Platform (EMP). This solution acts as a secure portal that provides project completion and deadline driven status of the requests needed to complete the testing. This tool provides great clarity to clients in where the process is and what items are outstanding. The portal is inter-active and provides a messaging center and restriction of access to specific requests to authorized users.
This intuitive solution standardizes the information collection process, enhances client experiences while securely exchanging the necessary information and automatically managing workflow. Our proven process increases efficiencies, in a secure platform that enhances the client experience.
Our handy guide, “Adding it Up: What Type of SOC Report Do I Need?” is a great starting point to determine what kind of SOC report best fits your company’s business and compliance needs.
When you’re ready to speak with an experienced team member about your reporting needs, Auditwerx will be here for you.
When you’re ready to start your PCI compliance journey, our experienced team will be here to walk you through the entire process, from assessment readiness to your final report.
Fill out this form to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with an experienced team member.
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