We’re celebrating LeadIQ’s SOC 2 Type II certification (and why you should too)

As a leader in account based prospecting software, LeadIQ has become a trusted partner of hundreds of mid-market sales teams across the globe. Running parallel to its growing customer base is the company’s expanding sophistication and capabilities.

The most recent and exciting development in this area is (drumroll, please): LeadIQ’s completion of the SOC 2 Type II audit.

If that news didn’t result in a standing ovation, it’s okay to hold your applause till the end. Keep reading to learn more about why SOC 2 Type II is a big deal, and why it matters for you and your business.

What is a SOC 2 audit?

SOC 2 certification is an audit completed by a third party auditor that looks at a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) company's security and data management processes and controls. In layman’s terms, it evaluates how well a SaaS company protects customer data.

SOC 2 is broken out into two types, conveniently named Type I and Type II. For its Type II audit, LeadIQ worked with Dansa D’Arata Soucia LLP (www.darata.com), who is a full-service CPA firm with over 10 years’ experience conducting SOC 2 audits.

“LeadIQ has always maintained a strong commitment to protecting our customers' data,” says Mei Siauw, CEO and Co-founder of LeadIQ. “This is a great achievement for our company and highlights the processes and procedures we have in place to protect our customers' data.”

While SOC 2 Type I and SOC 2 Type II may sound one and the same, they do involve slightly different processes. The main difference between the two is that Type I only provides a snapshot in time, while Type II evaluates data security and management over a period of time.

To explain via analogy, it’s similar to a high school math class’ grading system: A student will receive points for having the right answer (Type I), but to receive full credit has to show the work (Type II).

Why does SOC 2 Type II matter?

Not to put too fine a point on it, but SOC 2 Type II is a big deal in the world of SaaS. It is the gold standard for SaaS companies in terms of their security and data privacy management. It provides a third party evaluation and proof that a company is not only talking the talk, but walking the walk.

With new data breaches seeming to occur almost every day, finding technology partners who can prove that they have the right controls, processes, and tech stack in place to protect your data is critical. In addition to thinking about what compliance regulations your data provider meets (for example, LeadIQ is GDPR and CCPA aligned), you should also seriously consider what type of security certifications they have.

Just like compliance infractions, if data is compromised in a security breach, it can be costly— both financially, and in its impact on your brand. With sales teams using more tools than ever before, eliminating weak links in your tech debt can improve your security posture.

What’s next on LeadIQ’s security journey

A core component of LeadIQ’s mission is to enable sales teams to prospect smarter. As part of that initiative, we continuously work to implement stronger controls and improved processes to ensure our customers' data is secure, private, and available.

Since LeadIQ’s founding, a commitment to protecting customers' data has stood at the heart of every undertaking. Because data security is about continuous improvement, LeadIQ will continue evaluating new certifications and audits to improve its security posture.