PCI compliance

Turn an assurance request into a defined readiness program

Canada Create provides cyber security consulting focused on compliance for Toronto organizations preparing for enterprise procurement, a security review or a defined assurance program. For funded SaaS and AI teams, the first question is which service, systems and commitments the buyer needs covered. A framework name alone is not a workable scope.

We help organize the gap assessment, control implementation work and evidence needed for the agreed program. Your management team approves its policies, risk decisions and representations. An independent qualified provider performs any formal examination or certification. We deliver the readiness materials agreed in the proposal; the external assessor decides whether to issue an assurance report or certification, and the buyer makes its own procurement decision.

SOC 2 readiness for SaaS and service organizations

A SOC 2 engagement starts with the service being described: its infrastructure, software, people, procedures, data and relevant supplier dependencies. Discovery identifies the customer requirement, intended report users, proposed criteria, current controls and target dates to discuss with your CPA firm.

The readiness scope can include a gap register, policy and control ownership, a draft system description, evidence collection instructions and a remediation backlog. A Type I examination addresses a point in time; Type II also addresses operating effectiveness over a period. Agree the examination approach and period with your independent CPA firm rather than choosing a date from a marketing promise. The AICPA SOC resources explain the assurance role of CPAs.

For example, an access-review evidence record should identify the system, review owner, population reviewed, review date, exceptions and approvals. This is an illustrative record structure, not client evidence or a claim that a control passed. AI may help organize evidence or draft policies and questionnaire responses using inputs permitted for the project. Our team checks source support, applies technical and editorial judgement, and presents final materials for your approval before use. Generated text is not a substitute for an operating control or its records. See our SaaS SOC 2 readiness guide for procurement planning.

ISO 27001 implementation and certification readiness

ISO/IEC 27001 concerns an information security management system. Readiness work can cover its scope, risk assessment and treatment, responsibilities, the statement of applicability, policy implementation, internal review and preparation for certification-body assessment. The objective is a maintained management system with accountable owners.

Implementation support and certification are separate. A certification body makes its own assessment decision; Canada Create does not issue an ISO certificate. The official ISO/IEC 27001 overview explains the standard and certification distinction. Existing SOC 2 evidence may be useful, but overlapping work must be mapped rather than assumed to satisfy both programs.

For a practical boundary workshop, use our SaaS ISMS scope guide and its blank worksheet and fictional worked example to connect entities, activities, suppliers and exclusions.

PCI DSS readiness around your actual payment flow

Start with how payments enter the organization and which systems, people and providers affect that flow. Scope can include payment-data mapping, responsibility mapping, gap remediation and preparation of supporting evidence. Confirm validation requirements and questionnaire eligibility with the requesting acquirer, payment brand or qualified assessor as appropriate.

PCI SSC explains that outsourcing payment processing does not remove a merchant’s responsibility for protecting account data. Equally, a readiness engagement should not assume that every merchant needs the same assessment. Any required QSA work, approved scanning or penetration testing must be identified separately. The PCI Security Standards Council merchant resources provide the official starting point.

Privacy and regulated-sector work has a separate applicability gate

PIPEDA, Quebec Law 25 and PHIPA are privacy legislation, while financial-sector requirements depend on the activity and regulator. These are obligations to assess, not certifications. We can help organize technical safeguards, data inventories and evidence against obligations your legal, privacy or compliance advisers identify. Applicability depends on the organization, activities, information and jurisdiction. Legal opinions, statutory interpretation and regulatory filings are outside a technical-readiness scope unless separately arranged with the appropriate professionals.

What a scoped handover contains

• A documented boundary covering systems, services, suppliers and exclusions.
• A gap register linking each finding to a requirement, evidence source, owner and next action.
• An implementation backlog distinguishing your team’s work, our agreed work and external-provider dependencies.
• An evidence register with collection method, review cadence and approval responsibility.
• An assessor-handoff checklist and an open-issues log that does not hide unresolved gaps.

A security audit and risk assessment, penetration test or employee awareness program can be scoped where it supports the chosen readiness program. Ongoing managed security is a separate operational service with its own agreed coverage.

Related background: PIPEDA and document transmission and choosing a cyber security company.

Scope your compliance engagement

Custom-scoped engagements; proposal after discovery. Bring the buyer or assessor request, the systems involved, current evidence and desired decision date. The proposal identifies deliverables, responsibilities, assumptions and exclusions. External examination, certification, licences and specialist testing costs are identified separately; timing depends on the agreed scope and evidence readiness.