What is a whistleblower hotline?
A whistleblower hotline is a channel that provides an opportunity for members of an organization or users of a product to anonymously report vulnerabilities or other ethical or financial infractions. It encourages open communication both internally and externally.
To which control is the whistleblower hotline mapped?
The whistleblower evidence item is linked to the “Incidents External” control. This control is in place so that external parties may report system failures, incidents, concerns, and other complaints to appropriate personnel by submitting their issue via the organization's support webpage. The incident is documented in accordance with the “Incident Response Plan”, if required.
In order to show you have a whistleblower hotline in place, you will need to provide screenshots showing that the whistleblower hotline (or contact info) is available to both internal and external parties. Your auditor is simply looking to confirm it exists.
Is a whistleblower hotline required for SOC 2 compliance?
No, you are not required to have a whistleblower hotline for SOC 2 compliance. Oftentimes, the “Public Contact Information” evidence item is used as organizations should simply have some avenue for external parties to report issues. As long as your organization has something such as a “contact us” page on your website or a form of public contact info, the requirement is satisfied.
For more SOC 2 guidance, check out our "SOC 2 Controls - Tips and Tricks" or contact your CSM directly.