Editor’s note: The following is a sponsored blog post from A-LIGN.
When you work at a SaaS startup, your focus will be split between various responsibilities — including product development, sales, fundraising and more. In this stage of early growth, it may be hard to prioritize which tasks to complete first. Naturally, some things fall by the wayside.
Unfortunately, compliance is something that is often deprioritized. It’s tough to make sense of all the different certifications out there and designate the appropriate resources to undergo time-consuming audits. It is easy to see why some SaaS startups put compliance aside while they focus on other areas of the business.
However, with the average price of a data breach topping more than US$4 million, it’s no wonder compliance and cybersecurity assurance are practically considered mandatory for all startups looking to remain competitive (and protected!).
For SaaS organizations just getting started with compliance, here are three tips to keep your organization safe and successful:
#1: Don’t Delay Compliance Tasks
SaaS startups need to win new customers. However, many prospects hesitate to work with an organization relatively new to the market. Often, potential customers fear that newer companies aren’t as mature when it comes to cybersecurity processes and procedures — and therefore, worry their data won’t be safe.
Obtaining certifications and adopting trusted cybersecurity frameworks is one of the main ways to help reduce these fears, build trust and reassure prospective customers about your startup’s dedication to data security.
Even if your startup is not at the point where it wants to begin earning certifications, there are many practices you can implement to minimize risk from the beginning. These include:
- Determine your areas of highest risk. Communicate identified risk areas to the rest of the company. This ensures the entire team is on the same page concerning the startup’s highest priorities.
- Invest in technology. Startups should make sure they have both educational tools for internal staff and security tools to maximize their protection and mitigate the risk of data loss. It’s also important to invest in compliance automation software that assesses your level of readiness prior to beginning the audit and streamlines your compliance efforts.
- Create a business continuity plan. Before an incident can occur, develop and test a plan of what to do in the event of a ransomware attack or major cybersecurity event. Having a solid continuity plan in place will minimize the amount of downtime following a major event, lessening the amount of money that could be potentially lost due to the downtime.
#2: Prioritize a SOC 2 Audit
SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) audits assess an organization’s ability to securely handle customer data. In recent years, SOC 2 audits have become the gold standard of information security attestations.
The Benefits of a SOC 2 Report
SaaS startups can reap a host of benefits by undergoing a SOC 2 examination. Earning a SOC 2 attestation can:
- Help SaaS startups develop strong policies and procedures
- Build trust and credibility with prospective clients, banks and investors while looking to raise more funding
- Provide a competitive advantage that sets you apart from other SaaS startups in the field
Resources for Obtaining a SOC 2 Report
Fortunately, there are many resources for startups to leverage when undergoing the SOC 2 examination process.
Startups may benefit from completing a SOC 2 readiness assessment, as it can save the organization both time and money. Readiness assessments are like trial runs of the official audit that will take place during the SOC 2 certification process. The results from this assessment will identify high-risk control gaps in your systems and provide you with recommendations on how to fix the areas of concern before you begin the actual audit process.
#3: Partner with an Audit Firm
Compliance can be difficult to navigate, especially for startups still trying to get their feet on the ground. To minimize the strain on internal teams, SaaS startups can benefit from partnering with an audit firm early on to guide compliance management and security priorities.
A firm should act as a trusted partner that can advise you which compliance tasks/frameworks make the most sense for your industry, target customers and each stage of your growth.
For startups looking to work with US federal agencies, for example, auditors will advise you to prioritize industry-specific authorizations like FedRAMP or StateRAMP. These two authorizations can be lengthy even for well-established organizations to manage independently. Startups should team up with an audit firm that can provide additional tools and expert guidance to streamline the process.
Look for an auditor that offers a wide range of services you can utilize as you scale your business. A-LIGN, for example, offers general cybersecurity certifications/audits as well as industry-specific certifications that companies may need as their client base grows. Plus, with its compliance management software, A-SCEND, A-LIGN can carry organizations from readiness evaluation to report, streamlining the entire compliance process.
Begin Your Compliance Journey Today
Compliance is mandatory for SaaS startups. Growth-stage companies should prioritize creating a strong security infrastructure early in the process and continue scaling that infrastructure as the organization grows.
Partnering with an auditor with extensive experience in meeting the requirements of a broad range of compliance standards and security frameworks will allow SaaS startups to successfully navigate the compliance landscape.