Your enterprise prospect just asked if you're SOC 2 compliant. Here's how to get there without consuming your engineering team.
SOC 2 is the security standard that opens doors to enterprise deals, investors, and cyber insurance. Getting there doesn't require a full-time security hire or several months of lost product development time. It requires the right partner.
SOC 2 is a security compliance framework developed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). It evaluates how a company protects customer data across five Trust Service Criteria.
You don't need all five. Most startups begin with Security — the one criterion required in every SOC 2 report and the one that satisfies the majority of enterprise procurement requirements.
There are two report types. They serve different purposes, and the choice between them is usually dictated by your sales pipeline timeline.
| SOC 2 Type I Most common first step | SOC 2 Type II | |
|---|---|---|
| What it proves | A snapshot of your security controls at a single point in time | Verifies ongoing security practices over a 3–12 month period |
| Timeline | ~8 weeks with Kobalt | 3–12 months (observation window) |
| Best for | Unblocking a deal right now | Annual renewals, enterprise reviews, IPO prep |
| Accepted by | Most mid-market prospects | Enterprise buyers, public companies, financial institutions |
We map your controls against the SOC 2 criteria and tell you exactly what's missing. No guesswork.
We fix the gaps: configure your GRC platform, write policies, remediate technical findings in your cloud environment.
We act as liaison to the auditor, prepare the evidence package, and get your report issued. When your auditor requires a penetration test — most Type II programs do — we scope and schedule it as part of prep.
Sets strategy, owns the compliance roadmap, attends your board meetings if needed. The person accountable for your program end-to-end.
Writes your policies, manages evidence collection in your GRC platform, remediates technical findings, and interfaces with your auditor throughout the engagement.
Runs your weekly technical meetings, keeps the program on schedule, and coordinates between your team, the squad, and the auditor.
Compliance automation platforms like Vanta, Drata, and Scrut collect evidence from your cloud infrastructure, SaaS tools, and endpoints, then map it to the SOC 2 criteria. They're powerful. They're also just software.
Software doesn't write your custom policies. It doesn't remediate the AWS misconfiguration it flagged. It doesn't defend your control design choices to a human auditor. We configure and operate whichever platform fits your stack and budget. We interpret the results. We translate the dashboard into a finished audit package.
You can. Some companies do. Here's what they usually find: without a dedicated operator, these platforms surface issues that require interpretation and remediation. That work lands on your DevOps lead or CTO.
In most SMB companies, it requires 80 to 100+ hours across engineering, leadership and others to reach audit-readiness. That's time not being spent on the product.
The second issue is quality. DIY compliance often produces a "checkbox" program that satisfies a small-company security review but fails when a sophisticated enterprise buyer sends in their detailed questionnaire or requests a call with your security team.
With Kobalt, your team's involvement is minimal. We own the program. You sign off on policies and show up to the auditor kickoff call. That's it.
Your first SOC 2 Type I. We configure your GRC platform, write your core security policies, and get you audit-ready. Purpose-built for early-stage teams that need to move fast without adding headcount.
Talk to us about SOC 2 for StartupsMulti-standard support: SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, GDPR, and HIPAA. Combined with ongoing threat monitoring, managed endpoint protection, and a full fractional security team. For companies building a security program, not just checking a box.
Learn more about our programsAn enterprise prospect sent a security questionnaire. Your CTO is staring at it. You need a SOC 2 report, and you needed it three months ago.
Your Series A investors are asking about compliance. Your new enterprise customers will ask next.
M&A, IPO, or a major partnership. Every one of them involves a technical security review. SOC 2 is the fastest way to demonstrate you've built a real program.
Healthcare, fintech, government contractors: your customers operate in regulated environments and need evidence that their vendors do too.
Kobalt delivers SOC 2 compliance programs for companies wherever they're based. We work across time zones and understand the regulatory context in key markets including the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, UK, and Europe.
SOC 2 is a US-originated framework. But enterprise buyers worldwide ask for it. If your customers are in North America or you're selling into enterprise markets globally, SOC 2 is relevant regardless of where your company is headquartered.
SOC 2 Type I takes approximately 8 weeks from kickoff to report with Kobalt's managed program. Type II requires a 3–12 month observation window where your controls run continuously before the auditor issues the final report. The minimum is 3 months; most enterprise buyers expect at least 6. The window starts the day your controls are confirmed operational.
The total cost depends on your company size, current security posture, and audit firm fees. Kobalt's engagement fees are fixed monthly — no surprise invoices mid-program. Book a gap assessment and we'll give you a firm quote within the first two weeks.
Most companies start with Type I to unblock a specific deal or satisfy an immediate investor request. Type II is required by larger enterprise buyers and financial institutions — it proves your controls ran consistently over time, not just that they existed on audit day. We typically recommend getting Type I in 8 weeks, then immediately starting the Type II observation window. Depending on the window length (3–12 months), you'll have a Type II report within 5–14 months of starting.
SOC 2 is faster and more widely recognized in North America. ISO 27001 is the standard expected in Europe, the UK, and parts of APAC. If your primary market is North America, start with SOC 2. If you're selling internationally, we often run both in parallel — the frameworks overlap significantly, so the combined lift is less than doing them separately.
Your team's involvement is minimal. We run the gap assessment, write the policies, configure your GRC platform, remediate the technical findings, manage the auditor relationship, and prepare the evidence package. You review and approve policies, attend two or three calls with the auditor, and stay available for questions. Our clients typically report a 90% reduction in internal lift compared to doing it themselves.
Yes. We take over the operation of existing GRC platform instances regularly: Vanta, Drata, Scrut, and others. If your account has been sitting idle or partially configured, we audit what's been done and build from there. No need to restart.
Yes. We have clients across North America, Australia, the UK, and Southeast Asia. SOC 2 doesn't have geographic restrictions — it's an auditor standard, not a regulatory one. We have established auditor relationships in each of these markets.
Key steps: implement all applicable administrative policies and internal controls, perform a SOC 2 readiness assessment, and collect all policies, security documentation, and agreements with vendors and contractors. Most Type II audits also expect a recent penetration test — Kobalt's penetration testing service delivers auditor-accepted reports from $3,000. With Kobalt, we handle all of this for you as part of the program.
SOC 2 compliance requires ongoing monitoring and annual audits — it's not a one-time certification. Your Type II report covers a specific observation window and must be renewed each year. That means continuously running your controls, keeping policies current, applying security requirements to new infrastructure, and going through the audit cycle again annually. Kobalt provides continuous compliance support to keep you audit-ready year-round, not just in the weeks before an audit.
Yes. We work with a network of trusted SOC 2 auditors — including Prescient Security, Johanson Group, Insight Assurance, and A-LIGN — and help you select the right one based on your company size, budget, and timeline. We manage the auditor relationship throughout the engagement.
SOC 2 compliance doesn't end at the report. Your Type II report is valid for 12 months, and enterprise buyers expect annual renewal — that means ongoing monitoring, continuous control operation, and a new audit cycle each year. Most clients stay with Kobalt as the operating partner for renewals and program growth, and many layer in ISO 27001, HIPAA, or GDPR over time. FedRAMP is a separate, custom-scoped engagement — ask us if that's on your roadmap.
Not ready to book a call yet? These resources walk you through the process, the decisions, and what to expect.
The frameworks, the report types, the criteria — everything you need to understand before you start the process.
Read the guide →What Australian companies need to know: auditor selection, local context, and how SOC 2 fits alongside the Essential Eight.
Read the guide →How to choose based on where your buyers are — and when it makes sense to run both frameworks in parallel.
Read the guide →Your report is valid for 12 months. Here's what annual renewal, continuous monitoring, and program growth look like.
Read the guide →A quick-reference guide to the compliance frameworks that matter most — what they cover, who requires them, and how they compare.
Download the cheat sheet →SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, GDPR — see how Kobalt's full compliance and audit offering supports every stage of your program.
See our compliance services →Book a free gap assessment. We'll review your current environment, tell you exactly what's needed to reach audit-readiness, and give you a realistic timeline and scope. No pressure. No six-month retainer required to get started.