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Product Security Onboarding

1. What is “Product Security” in SaaS?

  • Protecting customer data from breaches, misuse, or accidental loss.
  • Covering both technology (encryption, access control, monitoring) and processes (policies, vendor checks, incident handling).
  • Demonstrated via recognized certifications & frameworks — these give customers proof we follow industry standards.


2. Key Certifications & Frameworks (What’s Out There)

(you get audited, get a formal certificate, can show customers)
  1. SOC 2 Type II – US SaaS trust standard, very common in procurement.
  2. ISO/IEC 27001 – International information security management certification.
  3. ISO/IEC 27701 – Privacy management (pairs with ISO 27001).
  4. FedRAMP Moderate – Required if selling to US federal agencies (government cloud).
  5. CMMC Level 2 – Required for Department of Defense-related contracts.
  6. PCI DSS SAQ – Payment card security compliance (usually handled by payment processor, but you still attest).
  7. CSA STAR Certification – Cloud security certification recognized globally.

Frameworks & Compliance Standards

(best practices, often referenced in RFPs; you align to them)
  1. NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) – US government–favored baseline for managing cybersecurity risk.
  2. NIST SP 800-53 – More detailed control set for government contracts.
  3. State Privacy Laws Compliance – CCPA/CPRA (California)
  4. GDPR – EU privacy regulation (important if expanding internationally).
  5. CJIS Security Policy – If handling law-enforcement-related data for municipal utilities.


3. Which Are Necessary for us as a Utility SaaS


  1. SOC 2 Type II – Most common for US SaaS, directly boosts sales via RFP compliance. Covers ~70–80% of ISO 27001 and aligns with many privacy/security laws.
  2. CCPA/CPRA Compliance – Mandatory for California consumer data. Complements SOC 2 work and can be implemented in parallel.
  3. ISO/IEC 27001 – Expands credibility internationally; much of the work overlaps with SOC 2 (~70–80%).
  4. ISO/IEC 27701 – Adds strong privacy governance; builds on ISO 27001 (~20–30% extra work).
  5. PCI DSS SAQ (likely SAQ A) – If processing payments, even with Stripe/DOKU, you’ll still need the light self-assessment -
    • We won’t need full PCI DSS certification (because Stripe/DOKU are PCI DSS Level 1 compliant and handle cardholder data).
    • We will still need to complete a PCI DSS SAQ - but the lightest version, usually SAQ A, since we never touch or store cardholder data on your systems.


6. Others only if required specifically by our customers:

  • FedRAMP, CMMC → Only for US government clients. (not needed if you get this data from state or municipal -> super costly process than that of SOC2 and ISO)
  • GDPR, CCPA → Privacy laws; implement alongside SOC 2 work for efficiency. (State Privacy Laws Compliance)
  • CSA STAR → Optional cloud security badge.
  • NIST CSF/SP 800-53 → Mostly if targeting US gov or regulated sectors.


Overlap: Completing SOC 2 first covers ~70% of ISO 27001, 50% of NIST CSF, and key privacy/security requirements.



4. Why we’re choosing SOC 2 Type II as a top priority

1. Direct Impact on Sales & RFP Wins

  • SOC 2 Type II is the most commonly requested security certification in U.S. SaaS procurement processes.
  • Many RFPs, especially from utilities, municipalities, and enterprise clients, have a hard requirement for SOC 2 before you can even bid.
  • Without it, we’re often blocked early in the sales funnel — losing deals before we can show the product.

2. Trust Signal for B2B and B2C Stakeholders

  • Enterprise customers see SOC 2 Type II as proof that we’re not just claiming security — it’s been verified by an independent auditor.
  • Consumers benefit indirectly, knowing their personal data is protected by rigorous controls.
  • Builds confidence for potential partners, resellers, and integrations.

3. Fits Our Current Market Focus

  • Our current customer base is mostly U.S.-based, where SOC 2 is the gold standard for SaaS security assurance.
  • It’s faster to achieve than ISO 27001 (typically 6–9 months vs. 12+ months) and gets us to market-ready compliance quicker.

4. Long-Term Strategic Benefit

  • Completing SOC 2 lays the foundation for other certifications with reduced cost and effort later (ISO 27001, ISO 27701, FedRAMP, etc.).
  • Annual renewal keeps our processes sharp, preventing security drift.

5. Coverage Across Multiple Compliance Needs

  • SOC 2 covers ~70–80% of the requirements in ISO 27001 (international standard) and ~50–60% of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, meaning we get multi-framework progress from one effort.
  • It also aligns with privacy laws like CCPA/CPRA by requiring strong controls for data protection, encryption, access management, and incident response.


5. SOC 2 Complete Overview

What's Exactly SOC 2 - https://bookstack.bynry.com/books/soc-ii/page/soc-2-overview

Certification Process - https://bookstack.bynry.com/books/soc-ii/page/certification-process-detailed-roadmap

Checklists - https://bookstack.bynry.com/books/soc-ii/chapter/checklists


6. Manual vs. Vendor Approach

Aspect

Manual

Vendor (Sprinto, Vanta)

Time to readiness

6–9 months

2–4 months

Internal workload

High

Moderate

Tooling

Build from scratch

Automated evidence collection

Cost (first year)

Lower infra cost, higher people cost

Platform + audit fee

Renewal ease

Harder (manual evidence collection each year)

Automated, easier yearly upkeep

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