Global business drives a need for SOC 2 certification

Nicola De Blasi, CEO of MPS Monitor, is a seasoned professional who has been working in the IT industry for more than 35 years. When launching the company, he utilized his many connections and vast industry experience to assemble a team that provides decades of experience in the areas of printer management, big data, Internet of Things, .NET software development, and many others.

MPS Monitor is a leading developer and provider of printer monitoring SaaS software for Managed Print Services. The company’s system involves installing agents into a customer’s network, which has the potential to present a cybersecurity risk. “Installing an agent is a sensitive and massive responsibility,” said Nicola. “We are extremely dedicated to providing our customers with the maximum level of data protection. We can only achieve this by continuing to better our cybersecurity posture and complying with industry standards.”

Since 2017, MPS Monitor has been ISO 27001 certified. The company is based in Italy and the UK, has global clients including in the U.S. and Canada. In order to best meet global standards and regulations, Nicola decided to pursue a SOC 2 certification. “Many of our clients benefit from viewing a deliverable as proof of compliance, such as a SOC 2 report,” he said. “A SOC 2 examination will help to widen our compliance scope with a new set of standards.”

Finding the right fit

MPS Monitor was looking for experts in the auditing industry to help guide them through the initial SOC 2 examination process. Nicola knew through his years of experience that MPS Monitor needed a seasoned auditor to help explain the fundamental procedures during this first-time SOC 2 assessment.

“I was unfamiliar with U.S.-based auditing firms, so we conducted a great deal of market research,” said Nicola. “We initially chose six firms and after the first round of interviews, short listed two candidates. A-LIGN was not the least expensive option, but price was not the main selling point because I’m a firm believer in ‘you get what you pay for’. We weren’t interested in hiring a firm based solely on price but rather the auditing experience they have to offer. After many conversations, I found that A-LIGN was the only firm that truly understood our needs and asked all of the right questions.”

Nicola knew he needed industry experts, an educational approach to the audit, and a licensed firm with the ability to conduct multiple types of audits. As a result, he decided to move forward with A-LIGN for their SOC 2 examination.

Earning their first SOC 2 report

As soon as MPS Monitor partnered with A-LIGN, they immediately kicked-off the SOC 2 examination process. “Our auditing process went very well,” said Nicola. “The entire experience was streamlined, wellcrafted and ran smoothly without any hiccups. The experience I was pitched during the sales cycle held true and met all expectations.”

With Nicola’s lead, MPS Monitor successfully achieved their first SOC 2 report. The SOC 2 examination was a positive experience for MPS Monitor as their internal team learned a great deal about the process, and the reasoning behind the requests and the resources required to complete the assessment. Nicola felt the auditors who worked on his account were competent, dedicated, and helpful.

“A-LIGN assigned two auditors to our account, held follow up calls, bi-weekly meetings and were always available to answer any and all questions,” he said. “This approach made myself and my entire team feel prepared and relaxed.”

Creating the gold standard

Working with A-LIGN’s educated auditors to understand the ‘why’ behind each new security protocol made a tremendous difference in how MPS Monitor approached SOC 2 compliance. With Nicola’s guidance, earning a SOC 2 report allowed his company to better position themselves in their market as the most secure platform.

“My goal in this assessment was to better our cybersecurity policies and procedures and A-LIGN absolutely helped us to accomplish this effort,” he said. “I continually strive to create a new gold standard for cybersecurity in the print industry, which is becoming a more dangerous landscape every day.”

Next steps

To learn more about how A-LIGN can help your organization through a variety of cybersecurity compliance assessments and audits, please visit www.a-lign.com/services or complete this form and an A-LIGN expert will reach out to you within 24 hours.

About MPS Monitor

MPS Monitor is the most complete and advanced print fleet management SaaS solution available on the worldwide market. Its unique ease of use, reliability of data flow, security and flexibility make it the optimal choice for any dealer who manages a fleet of printing devices at customers’ premises and wants to improve service levels, while reducing time and costs.

For more information, visit https://www.mpsmonitor.com/