In today's digital landscape, where data breaches and cyber threats are ever-present concerns, the security and integrity of customer data are paramount for ecommerce retailers. As technology continues to evolve, ensuring that service providers adhere to stringent security standards has become a top priority. This is where SOC 2 certification comes into play.
SOC 2, aka Service Organization Control Type 2, is a cybersecurity compliance framework developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) to ensure organizations protect client data from unauthorized use/access. The AICPA developed SOC 2 around the Trust Services Principles and Criteria which contains 5 pillars, including: security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. To get certified an organization must define the controls and security protocols in place for each of the 5 pillars and complete an audit with an AICPA-affiliated CPA who reviews and tests the cybersecurity controls in place according to the SOC 2 standard and documents their findings through an audit report.
Why is this important?
- Data Security: SOC 2 compliance ensures that service providers have robust systems and processes in place to safeguard sensitive data against unauthorized access, breaches, and cyber threats. Firewalls, two-factor authentication, and intrusion-detection are just a few examples of IT security tools used to protect data.
- Risk Mitigation: Compliance with SOC 2 standards helps mitigate the risk of data breaches and other security incidents, which could result in financial losses, reputational damage, and legal liabilities for both the service provider and their clients.
- Trust and Transparency: SOC 2 compliance demonstrates a commitment to security and trustworthiness, providing assurance to clients and stakeholders that their data is being handled responsibly and in accordance with industry best practices.
What does it mean to partner with a company that is SOC 2 certified?
- Enhanced Security: Partnering with a SOC 2 certified company means that your organization can trust that the partner has implemented robust security measures to protect sensitive data including information related to health, race, sexuality, religion, location, or finances.
- Compliance Assurance: Working with a SOC 2 certified partner can help your organization meet its own compliance requirements, as you can rely on the partner's adherence to industry standards.
- Risk Reduction: By choosing a SOC 2 certified partner, you reduce the risk of data breaches and security incidents, which can have significant consequences for your business and reputation such as having to shut down your site temporarily leading to lost sales, reaching out to inform shoppers their payment information may be compromised leading to a damaged reputation, as well as the time and money required to fix the data breach.
- Impact on Customer Trust and Competitive Advantage: SOC 2 compliance can enhance customer trust and serve as a competitive differentiator for ecommerce retailers who can highlight the importance of demonstrating a commitment to security and privacy to attract and retain customers in an increasingly competitive market.
How can you verify if a partner is SOC 2 certified?
- Review SOC 2 Report: Ask the potential partner for their SOC 2 report, which details the scope of the audit, the controls in place, and any findings or deficiencies identified during the assessment.
- Independent Verification: Ensure that the SOC 2 report has been issued by an independent auditing firm on the AICPA Registry and verify the authenticity of the report with the auditing firm.
At Fastr, we provide holistic support to ecommerce brands that empowers them to do more, better, faster, and reach their revenue goals.
Our digital experience composition (DXC) platform, Fastr Frontend, streamlines frontend building processes by giving ecommerce teams the ability to design freely, deploy quickly, iterate and scale testing easily, and ultimately take full control of their site's shopping experiences without any dev handoffs – all while supercharging compliance efficiency and confidence by providing fast accessibility management capability and – with Fastr's SOC 2 certification – ensuring brands’ data privacy, as well as that of their customers, is secure.
Our support and enablement of ecommerce brands extends beyond designing revenue-driving digital experiences. We're proud to be SOC 2 certified, demonstrating our additional commitment to upholding the highest standard of security and integrity for our customers, the experiences they create, and the customers they engage.
If you want to see more of what Fastr Frontend can do for ecommerce brands like yours, let's chat.
