The compliance landscape of the mortgage banking and title insurance industries have dramatically increased lender awareness and consideration of the policies, procedures and security of their third-party vendors. A key concern has been the integrity of non-public information (NPI) stored by vendors.
First Title and Escrow initially responded to the requirements set by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by completing its SOC 1 Type I and a SOC 1 Type II audit in 2012. First Title announced it has successfully completed its SOC 2 Type II audit as well, certifying the proper management of the security of its IT systems, its ongoing availability and the privacy measures taken to protect clients’ NPI stored digitally.
This audit adds an even greater level assurance to those who currently are and have considered doing business with First Title and Escrow that their technology infrastructure and software is secure and compliant, said the press release. The SOC 2 Type II audit is based on a comprehensive set of criteria known as the Trust Services Principles (TSP) composed of the following five sections: security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and/or privacy. These criteria are reviewed and tested by independent service auditor’s to insure compliance with the AICPA guidelines. Furthermore, First Title’s compliance with ALTA’s Best Practices was certified during the audit process.
“We have always been confident in the technology that we implemented at our company. Receiving the SOC 2 Type II Audit is now a tangible credential that affirms the security and liability management that has been adopted by our entire company,” First Title President Steve Papermaster said in a press relese.
The SOC 2 Type II audit for First Title comes just a few months before the first anniversary of TRID. Although the first year of the rule, also known as the “Know Before You Owe” mortgage rule, has been met with successful implementation industry wide, the CFPB is actively seeking to clarify and formalize guidance it is informally issues about the rule. The proposed amendments are open for comment until Oct. 18, 2016.
“First Title’s company culture is to inspire innovation. While the CFPB is seeking to clarify the TRID rule, we’ve worked hard to give our clients the highest level of assurance by developing our policies and procedures to give our customers maximum protection as verified by our previous SOC audits. We are proud to further solidify that fact with our SOC 2 Type II Audit in advance of the first anniversary of TRID,” First Title Chief Operating Officer Pamela Gibbons said.
First Title & Escrow opened in 1997, servicing Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.