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Compliance Framework

SOC 2

SOC 2

SOC 2 is an auditing standard developed by the AICPA that evaluates how technology and cloud companies manage customer data across five Trust Services Criteria: Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy. ServiceNow GRC/IRM helps technology companies build and operate the continuous control environment that SOC 2 Type II requires.

What is SOC 2?

The framework explained

SOC 2 (Service Organization Control 2) is an auditing framework developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) that evaluates how service organizations — particularly technology and cloud companies — manage customer data and system security. SOC 2 audits assess controls against the Trust Services Criteria (TSC): Security (common criteria, required for all SOC 2 audits), Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy. Most technology companies pursue SOC 2 audits that cover at least the Security criteria, with many also including Availability and Confidentiality. There are two types of SOC 2 reports. Type I assesses whether controls are suitably designed at a point in time. Type II — the more valuable and commonly required report — assesses whether controls operated effectively over a defined period, typically 6 or 12 months. SOC 2 Type II reports are increasingly required by enterprise customers as evidence of security and operational maturity before entering into vendor relationships.
ServiceNow Approach

How ServiceNow addresses SOC 2

ServiceNow GRC/IRM provides technology companies with the operational infrastructure to build and maintain the continuous control environment that SOC 2 Type II requires. Controls mapped to the Trust Services Criteria can be tested on a continuous basis within ServiceNow — with automated test assignments, evidence collection, effectiveness scoring, and issue creation for control gaps. This continuous testing approach produces the evidence trail that auditors need for a Type II opinion. Risk assessments can be structured within ServiceNow to identify and treat risks to security, availability, and confidentiality — satisfying the risk assessment requirements of the common criteria. ServiceNow Vendor Risk Management supports third-party risk management requirements within the common criteria, and ServiceNow SecOps supports the incident response and monitoring controls required across multiple Trust Services Criteria. Dashboards give compliance teams, security leadership, and auditors real-time visibility into control health throughout the audit period.
XAAS Implementation

How we implement SOC 2

XAAS Solutions implements ServiceNow GRC/IRM as the operational platform for SOC 2 Type II audit readiness. We map your control environment to the Trust Services Criteria you are pursuing, configure continuous control testing workflows, and implement risk assessment processes aligned to AICPA requirements. We help your team move from annual audit preparation scrambles to continuous compliance — maintaining audit-ready evidence throughout the year. For organizations pursuing their first SOC 2 audit, we help design a practical control environment that is both auditor-ready and operationally sustainable. For organizations improving an existing SOC 2 program, we identify gaps in control coverage and testing rigor and implement ServiceNow workflows to address them.
Frequently Asked Questions

About SOC 2 on ServiceNow

What is SOC 2?

SOC 2 is an auditing framework developed by the AICPA that evaluates how technology and cloud service companies manage customer data and system security. It assesses controls against Trust Services Criteria including Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy.

What is the difference between SOC 2 Type I and Type II?

SOC 2 Type I assesses whether controls are suitably designed at a single point in time. SOC 2 Type II assesses whether those controls operated effectively over a defined period (typically 6 to 12 months). Enterprise customers typically require Type II reports as they provide stronger evidence of ongoing control effectiveness.

What are the SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria?

The Trust Services Criteria are the five categories against which SOC 2 controls are evaluated: Security (required for all audits, also called the Common Criteria), Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy. Most organizations pursue SOC 2 audits covering at least Security, with many also including Availability and Confidentiality.

How does ServiceNow help with SOC 2 compliance?

ServiceNow GRC/IRM maps controls to the Trust Services Criteria, automates continuous control testing and evidence collection, manages risk assessments, and builds audit-ready dashboards. ServiceNow SecOps supports incident response and monitoring controls. ServiceNow Vendor Risk Management supports third-party risk management requirements.

How long does SOC 2 Type II certification take?

SOC 2 Type II requires a minimum audit observation period, typically 6 months, during which controls must operate effectively. Organizations new to SOC 2 should allow 3 to 6 months to design and implement controls before beginning the observation period, meaning the full journey from start to report is often 9 to 18 months.

Who needs SOC 2 certification?

SOC 2 is primarily relevant for technology companies, SaaS vendors, managed service providers, and any organization that stores or processes customer data on behalf of enterprise clients. It is not legally required but is increasingly demanded by enterprise customers as a condition of vendor contracts.

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