Importance of Quarterly Access Reviews for SOC 2 Type II Compliance and Common Audit Pitfalls
π GRC education: If you're pursuing SOC 2 Type II, access reviews are a required periodic control β and most auditors expect them quarterly. Here's what auditors look for: β Evidence that you reviewed who has access to each in-scope system β Documentation of your review decisions (approve, revoke, escalate) β Timely revocation of access for anyone flagged during the review β Consistent cadence β not just a one-time review right before the audit Common gaps we see: β Reviews run once a year instead of quarterly β No documentation of decisions β just informal Slack threads β Terminated employees missed because they had direct app logins outside SSO The good news: when access reviews are run in Vanta, the evidence is captured automatically β no manual screenshots required. How frequently is your team running access reviews? π
