Hey everyone! Our compliance team has just dropped a bombshell: they now want us to log absolutely everything—every API call, database query, file access, user action, you name it—for a whopping 7 years. We're already dreading the skyrocketing costs of CloudTrail and S3 storage. Not to mention, they expect real-time alerts for what's deemed "suspicious activity," which they interpret as basically everything. Honestly, it feels like our logging costs are about to outpace our compute expenses! Has anyone else faced such crazy compliance demands? How can I push back against this without getting the dreaded "you don't care about security" speech?
5 Answers
Seriously, start estimating costs for this excessive logging and present them to your management or auditors for approval. It’s vital to shift the discussion from just compliance demands to practical solutions that still meet security objectives. Also, a phrase like 'compensating controls' can be very effective in negotiations!
Not to mention the inefficiency of logging every single thing; find a balance!
Let me rant a bit about SOC2: it's more of an accounting standard than a technical one, created by the AICPA, and often feels like a checkbox exercise rather than a meaningful security measure. I've seen auditors set unreasonable standards because they misunderstand what SOC2 really entails. It’s all about compliance, but they usually won’t be able to point you to any specific requirements demanding 7 years of logs. Start pushing back based on that.
Haha, perfect analogy! SOC2 is like a driver’s license—you don’t need to be an exceptional driver to have one.
This is gold! Saving your comment for future battles ahead.
We've been in the same boat! When our auditors initially requested all-encompassing logging, we pushed back using a risk-based logging framework. We demonstrated how logging every single database read was actually increasing security risks, thanks to alert fatigue and storage costs impacting our security budget.
Exactly! And we had to be careful about sensitive data being logged, too.
I had a similar insistence from a customer. It took a good explanation about our append-only database structure to clarify that duplicating logs was pointless.
Haha, they'll probably even want screenshots of those logs, not just the files!
Oh man, I know that feeling! Getting inundated with requests for endless screenshots is a nightmare.
Lmao, had to take a million screenshots last time just to meet their needs!
If you've faced such demands, you're supposed to ask the auditors for evidence of this requirement in the SOC2 framework. It's mostly about ensuring you do what your own policies state, not about excessive logging.
Exactly! It often boils down to whether the organization understands the actual requirements.
I agree. If the compliance team wrote that down, they need to justify it, not just insist on it.
Right? They might backtrack once they see the costs involved.