Abdul Samad Saleem
March 24, 2025
Discover how a small organization with 50 employees can achieve SOC 2 Security Trust Principle compliance using Office 365. This guide details controls for CC1–CC9, leveraging tools like Microsoft Entra ID, Defender, and Power Automate for automation. Learn practical steps, explore Microsoft 365 packages, and build a secure, compliant foundation today.
Introduction
In today’s cloud-first world, SOC 2 compliance is a critical milestone for small organizations aiming to prove their commitment to securing customer data. The Security Trust Principle, mandatory for all SOC 2 audits, ensures systems and information are safeguarded against unauthorized access, breaches, and disruptions. For a 50-employee organization using Office 365 licenses (Business Premium, Business Basic, E3, and Enterprise Mobility), with data primarily in SharePoint (internal and external sites) and minimal on-premises infrastructure (laptops, Wi-Fi, switches, printers), achieving SOC 2 Security compliance is both essential and attainable.
This article outlines controls for the nine Security Trust Principle areas (CC1–CC9) using Office 365’s native tools, emphasizing automation to streamline efforts. Whether you’re a SaaS startup or small business, this guide offers actionable steps for SOC 2 success.
SOC 2 Security Trust Principle: Control Areas Overview
The SOC 2 Security Trust Principle comprises nine Common Criteria (CC1–CC9):
- CC1: Control Environment – Leadership accountability and roles.
- CC2: Communication and Information – Transparent security communication.
- CC3: Risk Assessment – Identifying risks.
- CC4: Monitoring Activities – Control effectiveness checks.
- CC5: Control Activities – Policies and safeguards.
- CC6: Logical and Physical Access Controls – Access restriction.
- CC7: System Operations – Incident response.
- CC8: Change Management – System change control.
- CC9: Risk Mitigation – Continuity and vendor oversight.
For a cloud-based organization with external SharePoint collaboration, these controls address risks like data leaks and unauthorized access.
Designing Controls with Office 365 for Each Control Area
CC1: Control Environment
- Objective: Establish leadership commitment and roles.
- Solution: Use Microsoft Entra ID for role-based access control (RBAC). Document policies in SharePoint, shared via Teams.
- Automation: Power Automate sends policy updates and tracks acknowledgments.
CC2: Communication and Information
- Objective: Ensure clear security communication.
- Solution: SharePoint pages outline expectations; Viva Engage or Teams distributes updates. Audit Logs track incidents.
- Automation: Power Automate sends alerts for updates or training.
CC3: Risk Assessment
- Objective: Identify and assess risks.
- Solution: Microsoft Secure Score evaluates Office 365 risks; Defender Vulnerability Management scans endpoints.
- Automation: Schedule Secure Score reports via Power BI.
CC4: Monitoring Activities
- Objective: Evaluate control effectiveness.
- Solution: Microsoft Defender for Office 365 monitors threats; Sentinel (if licensed) centralizes logs.
- Automation: Defender alerts flag anomalies; Sentinel playbooks automate reviews.
CC5: Control Activities
- Objective: Mitigate risks with policies and controls.
- Solution: Purview DLP prevents data leaks; Entra ID enforces MFA; Intune secures endpoints.
- Automation: DLP auto-applies labels; Power Automate quarantines suspicious files.
CC6: Logical and Physical Access Controls
- Objective: Restrict unauthorized access.
- Solution: Entra ID Conditional Access limits SharePoint logins; Intune enforces BitLocker on laptops.
- Automation: Intune wipes lost devices; Entra ID Access Reviews audit permissions.
CC7: System Operations
- Objective: Detect and respond to incidents.
- Solution: Defender for Endpoint monitors threats; response plans live in SharePoint.
- Automation: Defender auto-remediates phishing emails; playbooks escalate incidents.
CC8: Change Management
- Objective: Control system changes.
- Solution: SharePoint tracks content changes; Intune manages updates; Teams handles approvals.
- Automation: Intune deploys patches; Power Automate sends change alerts.
CC9: Risk Mitigation
- Objective: Ensure continuity and vendor oversight.
- Solution: Office 365 retention policies back up SharePoint; Defender assesses external risks.
- Automation: Retention auto-archives data; Power Automate schedules vendor reviews.
Maximizing Automation with Office 365
Automation is key for small teams. Power Automate streamlines policy updates (CC1), notifications (CC2), log reviews (CC4), and change alerts (CC8). Defender automates threat detection (CC4, CC7), while Intune manages devices (CC6, CC8). Sentinel (if available) triggers response playbooks, and Entra ID Access Reviews automate audits—reducing manual effort for a 50-person team.
Lessons from Similar Organizations
Small businesses using Office 365 for SOC 2 often:
- Leverage Defender and DLP for monitoring and controls (CC4/CC5).
- Automate access with Entra ID and Intune (CC6), vital for remote teams.
- Simplify continuity (CC9) with Microsoft’s cloud reliability.
- Manage SharePoint sharing risks via DLP and Conditional Access.
Key takeaway: Use native tools to avoid complexity.
Implementation Roadmap
1) Assess: Run Secure Score; review SharePoint settings against CC1–CC9.
2) Configure: Enable MFA, DLP, Defender, and Intune.
3) Automate: Deploy Power Automate for notifications and reporting.
4) Test: Simulate breaches or device loss to verify controls.
5) Document: Store policies and logs in SharePoint; use Purview Compliance Manager.
6) Audit: Choose SOC 2 Type 1 or 2; engage an auditor.
Available Microsoft 365 Packages
Microsoft 365 offers plans tailored to various needs:
- Microsoft 365 Personal: Apps, 1 TB storage, Defender. Learn More
- Microsoft 365 Family: Up to 6 users, 1 TB each. Learn More
- Business Basic: Web apps, Teams, 1 TB storage. Learn More
- Business Standard: Desktop apps, security, Intune. Learn More
- Business Premium: Advanced security, compliance. Learn More
- Enterprise (E3, E5): Enterprise-grade features. Learn More
Note: Packages evolve over time. For current plans, visit: Compare All Plans.
Conclusion
For a 50 employee organization, SOC 2 Security compliance (CC1–CC9) is achievable with Office 365 tools like Entra ID, Defender, Purview, and Power Automate. Automation ensures efficiency, proving small teams can meet big standards. Start by auditing your security with Secure Score and build a compliant foundation today.
