Compliance in the IT/SaaS sector: from ISO 27001 to AI-driven management

As an IT or SaaS company, compliance isn't a side issue — it's a prerequisite for doing business. Enterprise customers ask for ISO 27001 certification before they'll even consider a pilot. Prospects want to see a SOC 2 report. And with NIS2, a legal obligation is being added from Europe for digital service providers.

The question isn't whether you need to work on compliance, but how to approach it smartly without it slowing down your innovation. In this article, we show which standards are relevant for IT/SaaS companies, how ISO 27017 takes your cloud security to the next level, and how AI fundamentally accelerates your compliance work.

The standards stack for IT/SaaS

IT and SaaS companies face a unique combination of standards. Where a traditional company might get by with ISO 9001, as a digital service provider you need a broader foundation:

ISO 27001 — the foundation

ISO 27001 is the international standard for information security and the most requested certification by enterprise customers. It provides a framework for establishing, implementing, and maintaining an Information Security Management System (ISMS). For IT/SaaS companies, this is almost always the first step.

ISO 27017 — cloud security specific

This is where it gets interesting for SaaS companies. ISO 27017 supplements ISO 27001 with cloud-specific security measures. Where ISO 27001 provides a generic framework, ISO 27017 goes deeper into the specific risks of cloud environments:

For SaaS companies that want to demonstrate cloud security, ISO 27017 is a powerful addition to your ISO 27001 certification. It shows that you not only have generic information security in order but also specifically consider the cloud context in which your services operate.

Want to know more? Read our comprehensive page on ISO 27017 for a complete overview of the standard and how to implement it.

SOC 2 — for the international market

SOC 2 is the de-facto standard for service providers processing customer data, especially in the American market. The five Trust Services Criteria — Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy — align well with what SaaS companies already need to arrange.

The good news: if you already have ISO 27001, you have a solid foundation for SOC 2. Many controls overlap, so you don't have to start from scratch.

NIS2 — the legal obligation

NIS2 is the European directive for network and information security. Digital infrastructure and ICT service providers — including SaaS companies and managed service providers — fall directly under this. This isn't an optional certification but a legal obligation with fines for non-compliance.

ISO 9001 — quality as a foundation

ISO 9001 might seem less obvious for an IT company, but it demonstrates that your processes, service delivery, and product development are controlled and continuously improved. For SaaS companies that also provide consulting or implementation services, this is a valuable addition.

The challenge: speed vs. compliance

The biggest tension for IT/SaaS companies is the balance between innovation speed and compliance requirements. Your development team wants to ship features quickly. Your sales team wants to do a demo at an enterprise prospect next week. And your compliance officer wants everything properly documented first.

This tension grows as you manage more standards. ISO 27001 + ISO 27017 + SOC 2 + NIS2 — that's four sets of requirements, controls, and audits. With traditional tooling and manual management, it quickly becomes a full-time job.

AI as a compliance accelerator

This is where the real transformation happens. AI makes it possible to treat compliance as an integrated part of your daily work processes rather than a separate project that takes away capacity.

uComply offers two powerful AI options specifically tailored to IT/SaaS companies:

Microsoft Copilot integration

For organizations working with Microsoft 365, uComply offers a deep Copilot integration that seamlessly weaves compliance into your existing workplace:

The power of the Copilot integration lies in context: the AI knows which standards you're implementing, which controls you have, and what the status is. It's not a generic chatbot, but a compliance expert that knows your specific situation.

uComply AI Assistant

No Microsoft 365? No problem. The built-in uComply AI Assistant offers the same powerful AI support, independent of your IT platform:

What does this mean in practice?

A concrete example. You want to implement ISO 27017 as a supplement to your existing ISO 27001 certification. Traditionally, this means:

With uComply and AI support:

The result: what traditionally takes months can be achieved in weeks — with better quality and less manual work.

Secure AI — a must for IT/SaaS

As an IT/SaaS company, you know better than anyone how sensitive data is. That's why it's crucial that the AI you use for compliance also meets the highest security standards.

With uComply:

This isn't a marketing promise but an architectural choice. The AI runs within your environment or within a secure, isolated SaaS environment. Your data is yours.

Multi-standard: the secret to efficiency

The real power of an integrated approach becomes visible when managing multiple standards simultaneously. ISO 27001, ISO 27017, SOC 2, NIS2 — they share more than you think:

uComply automatically links overlapping requirements. One measure you document for ISO 27001 automatically counts for SOC 2 and NIS2 where the same requirement applies. This saves an average of 40% implementation time for the second and subsequent standards.

For an IT/SaaS company implementing ISO 27001 + ISO 27017 + SOC 2, that's the difference between a year-long project and a journey of just a few months.

Two routes, one goal

uComply offers two implementation routes specifically tailored to IT/SaaS companies:

uComply SaaS — start today

Operational immediately, within a day. No IT project, no infrastructure needed. Ideal for SaaS companies that want to quickly obtain their first certification or that don't want to be tied to the Microsoft ecosystem. The built-in AI Assistant is immediately available.

uComply In-Tenant — maximum control

For organizations working with Microsoft 365 that want maximum data sovereignty. uComply runs entirely within your own tenant. Your compliance data never leaves your environment. Plus: the powerful Copilot integration makes compliance part of your daily work processes in Teams, Outlook, and SharePoint.

Both routes support the same standards, the same content packs, and the same multi-standard approach. The difference is where your data resides and which AI integration you use. And the beauty: you can always migrate from SaaS to in-tenant when you're ready.

Conclusion

Compliance in the IT/SaaS sector is complex, but it doesn't have to be a brake on your growth. With the right approach, it becomes a competitive advantage: you show enterprise customers that you take security seriously, you meet legal requirements like NIS2, and you differentiate yourself from competitors who can't demonstrably show their cloud security is in order.

The combination of ISO 27001 as foundation, ISO 27017 for cloud-specific security, and AI-driven management via Copilot or the uComply AI Assistant makes it possible to set up compliance efficiently, scalably, and future-proof.

Schedule a demo and discover how uComply helps your IT/SaaS organization become compliant faster, smarter, and more securely.

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