Comodo

SOC 3 Certification

SOC 3 (System and Organization Controls 3) was created by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) as part of their Service Organization Control reporting framework. Developed alongside SOC 1 and SOC 2 reports, SOC 3 emerged as the public-facing version of the SOC 2 report, designed to provide a general-use report on controls at service organizations. The AICPA introduced these frameworks to establish standardized criteria for evaluating and reporting on the security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy of systems that service organizations use to process user data.

For penetration testing and cybersecurity companies, SOC 3 certification is highly valued because it demonstrates to potential clients that the firm has undergone independent third-party assessment of its security controls and business practices. Unlike the detailed SOC 2 report which is restricted and shared only under NDA, SOC 3 reports can be freely distributed and displayed publicly, making them excellent marketing tools for cybersecurity firms to showcase their commitment to security. When a penetration testing company holds SOC 3 certification, it signals to clients that the firm protecting their most sensitive data and conducting security assessments has itself been validated to maintain rigorous internal controls—essentially proving they practice what they preach and can be trusted with access to critical systems and confidential information.