For any company, SOC 2 should be a milestone to signals maturity and trustworthiness. It’s often the key to unlocking bigger deals and accelerating sales cycles.
However, many founders misunderstand what SOC 2 really is. It’s not a certification you hang on a wall, it’s an attestation report issued by an independent auditor.
That report is what enterprise customers actually read to determine whether they can trust you with their data.
Understanding what a SOC 2 report includes, and how to get one efficiently, can make the difference between closing deals or wasting your time.
Key takeaways
- It’s a report, not a certificate: SOC 2 is an auditor’s independent opinion on your company’s security controls, not a one-time certification.
- The content matters most: The value lies in the scope, criteria covered (Security, Availability, Confidentiality, etc.), and the auditor’s findings.
- You have two main paths: Either manage it internally using a compliance automation platform, or partner with a done-for-you service that handles the entire process for you.
What is a SOC 2 report?
Developed by the AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants), SOC 2 is an attestation report, not a pass/fail exam.
Think of it as a detailed inspection report rather than a simple certificate of occupancy. It describes how your systems protect data and how effectively your controls operate, based on the Trust Services Criteria (TSC):
- Security (mandatory): Protecting systems and data from unauthorized access.
- Availability: Ensuring systems are accessible for use as agreed.
- Processing Integrity: Making sure system processing is complete, valid, and accurate.
- Confidentiality: Protecting information marked as confidential.
- Privacy: Governing the collection, use, and disclosure of personal data.
You’ll also choose between two report types:
- Type I: a snapshot of controls at a single point in time.
- Type II: evaluates how those controls operate over time (3 to 12 months).
The choices you make here, what criteria to include and which type to pursue, directly affect how valuable your report will be to customers.
When is it too early to do SOC2? And why that’s okay
Not every startup needs SOC 2 right away.
If you’re still building or your infrastructure is changing weekly, it’s perfectly fine to wait.
You probably don’t need SOC 2 yet if:
- You don’t handle sensitive customer data.
- No prospect, investor, or partner has asked for it.
- Your infrastructure is evolving too quickly for stable controls.
- Your product or market is still being validated.
Pursuing SOC 2 prematurely can waste time and budget:
- You’ll redo documentation after every major system change.
- Your audit evidence becomes outdated fast.
- Your engineers lose focus on product development.
Best practice:
Focus first on security fundamentals - access control, encryption, backups, and incident response.
Then, once enterprise customers start asking about SOC 2, you’ll be ready to move quickly and efficiently.
How to get a SOC 2 report
1. The DIY automation platform
This is the most common route, with well-known tools.
These platforms automate evidence collection, provide templates, and integrate with your cloud tools.
However, they’re still tools, not services. Someone on your team, often the CTO, COO, or lead engineer, must:
- Define the scope and controls
- Customize dozens of policies
- Manage auditor communication
- Track remediation tasks and timelines
This model saves some manual work but still demands dozens if not hundreds of internal hours and makes a key team member a part-time compliance manager.
2. A done-for-you service
Probo was built for companies that need to achieve SOC 2 without distracting their team.
Here’s how our approach differs:
- We understand your business. Then we handle everything from scoping to documentation and auditor coordination.
- We guide strategic decisions for you. Our compliance experts craft tailored documentation that reflects your actual systems and workflows.
- We manage the audit process end-to-end. You focus on product and growth; we focus on compliance. You will still meet the auditor: it is your company.
The result: a high-quality SOC 2 report that passes enterprise scrutiny while your team focus on your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What’s the difference between SOC 2 Type I and Type II?
A Type I report is a point-in-time review confirming your controls are designed properly.
A Type II covers several months, verifying those controls operate effectively in practice.
Most enterprise customers will expect a Type II.
- How long does it take to get a SOC 2 report?
Your current security maturity determines the exact timeline. With a modern compliance approach, a Type I report can be achieved in 1 or 2 months. A Type II adds an observation period of at least 3 months.
- Do I need a compliance expert to use automation tools?
Yes. Even with automation, someone on your team must act as the compliance lead, defining scope, customizing controls, and managing auditors.
A done-for-you service like Probo eliminates that burden by providing compliance experts who handle it on your behalf.
- What’s the main difference between an automation tool and a service like Probo?
An automation tool gives you the software to manage compliance yourself. Probo gives you a team that uses automation where it helps but also takes full ownership of documentation, risk assessments, and audit management, delivering a complete, audit-ready SOC 2 program.