Pittsburgh-based PCN Network was granted The American Institute of Public Accountants’ Service Organization Control (SOC 2) Type II certification for its Safe Escrow System and related service. Safe Escrow utilizes its proprietary technology to provide a managed disbursement solution for title agents, underwriters and mortgage lenders.
The examination also included the suitability of design and testing the operating effectiveness of controls to meet ALTA’s Best Practices Pillar No. 2 (escrow trust accounting).
A SOC 2, Type II examination represents the elite standard of detailed examination of suitability of design and testing the operating effectiveness of controls to meet criteria for security, availability and process integrity, as set forth by the AICPA, Trust Services Principles and Criteria. It is a widely-accepted auditing measurement indicating strong controls in, among other things, the integrity of processing of and protection of confidential data with respect to escrow accounts managed by Safe Escrow.
In 2011, The American Institute of Public Accountants created Service Organization Controls (SOC) reporting standards. The SOC 2, which replaces the SAS 70, reports the evaluation of an independent auditor as to the effectiveness of controls at a service organization relative to security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality and privacy.
The SOC 2 designation implies that Safe Escrow meets or exceeds Pillar No. 2, which urges settlement services-related firms to adopt and maintain strong written procedures and controls for escrow trust accounts and includes the electronic verification of reconciliation.
“While many settlement services firms or title agents perform limited reviews or self-assessments, Safe Escrow has submitted itself to an independent evaluation and detailed testing of its service, and has met the requirements of ALTA and the AICPA’s rigorous SOC 2 standards without exception,” Safe Escrow President and CEO Pritam Advani said in a news release. “Lenders and underwriters are seeking to mitigate risk associated with escrow funds. The Safe Escrow System and related service is designed to improve the present state of escrow funds management. Our title agent clients have also informed us that our system is easy to work with, while achieving a degree of control and security standards that they could never attain on their own. Safe Escrow willingly incurred the expense and effort associated with a detailed SOC 2, Type II examination, as it conclusively demonstrates the value of our Safe Escrow System and related service.”