Live Webinar | 26 June 2025 9AM PT
From Black Box to Boardroom: Operationalizing Trust in AI Governance
January 21, 2025

Automated controls testing: Enhancing compliance and efficiency for security teams

Compliance management is increasingly challenging due to regulations like SOC 2, ISO 27001, and GDPR. Managing audits, policies, vendor assessments, and risk can overwhelm IT, security, compliance, and risk teams.

Automated compliance checks, like CAT, simplify this by running daily checks on compliance artifacts, flagging "passing" or "failing" items.

Automated controls testing helps teams stay audit-ready, reduce manual effort, and prioritize critical compliance areas.

Why automated compliance testing is key

IBM Statistics on Non-Compliance Costs for 2024

Source: https://www.ibm.com/reports/data-breach

Manual compliance checks are slow and error-prone, creating challenges for your organization in presenting documentation to auditors. Automated controls testing streamlines tasks, reduces risk, and provides real-time visibility, helping leaders manage demands and proactively fix gaps before audits.

Here's how:

1. POLICY LIFECYCLE

Always know if your policies are up-to-date

Ensuring robust policy management for compliance demands timely drafting, approval, review, and publishing to ensure regulatory compliance.

Automated controls testing verifies policy publication and acceptance every 24 hours, flagging gaps as "failing" and eliminating manual checks, easing leaders' workload.

Example

Imagine preparing for a SOC 2 audit and discovering a critical security policy is still in draft mode.

CAT alerts you daily about the failing test, ensuring the policy is approved and published well before the audit.

Outcomes:

  • Continuously monitors policy status, preventing non-compliance surprises.
  • Saves hours of manual follow-ups on whether policies are published and accepted.

2. EMPLOYEE TRAINING

Automate ISMS and security campaign checks

Automating ISMS and security awareness campaign checks can eliminate the bottleneck of chasing employees for mandatory training.

Automated controls testing helps track training status through compliance and MDM tools, flagging incomplete training every 24 hours and generating follow-up tasks.

Example:

An IT or security team preparing for an ISO 27001 audit runs automated tests and finds that 5% of the workforce has not completed the required security training.

Automated controls testing flags non-compliance early, enabling timely follow-up and ensuring audit readiness.

Outcomes

  • Reduces the risk of audit failure due to incomplete security training records.
  • Automates remediation to ensure that employees meet training deadlines much before audits.

3. VENDOR RISK MANAGEMENT

No more guessing vendor risk scores

Vendor management is crucial as third-party risks rise, but updating risk scores can drain resources.

Automated controls testing runs continuous assessments, flags outdated scores, and triggers a review if scores are not updated, ensuring compliance across frameworks.

Example:

A cloud provider hasn't had a risk score for months.

Automated tests detect the gap and notify the GRC team, ensuring continuous vendor risk monitoring.

Outcomes:

  • Continuous monitoring of third-party risks with automated, timely tests.
  • Less reliance on manual vendor reviews and more proactive management.

4. ACCESS CONTROL

No more missed access reviews

Tracking user access rights for compliance is challenging, especially across multiple frameworks.

Automated controls testing simplifies this by tracking completed and pending reviews, marking them as passing or failing, and helping users prioritize actions to stay compliant.

Example:

An incomplete HIPAA access review causes the compliance test to fail.

The admin notices and follows up with the relevant POC to resolve the issue.

Outcomes:

  • Automates access review tracking and prevents outdated permissions.
  • Identifies gaps in access reviews and enhances security.

5. CLOUD SECURITY

Real-time assurance for your cloud and applications

As businesses move to the cloud, a strong cloud security strategy is crucial for compliance. Cloud security tools automate daily checks, flagging issues like unencrypted databases or insecure endpoints, and ensuring alignment with frameworks like CMMC or GDPR.

Example:

Automated compliance tests detect unencrypted S3 buckets in dynamic AWS setups, allowing teams to quickly address issues and minimize risk.

Outcomes

  • Real-time cloud compliance with automatic configuration checks.
  • Immediate risk mitigation by flagging misconfigurations as they occur.
Why organizations use automated control testing

Sources:
1. https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/risk/articles/internal-audit-robotic-process-automation-adoption.html
2. https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2021-06-08-gartner-survey-shows-62-percent-of-organizations-expect-external-audit-fees-to-increase-in-2021

Conclusion

Automated compliance tests enable continuous monitoring and improve audit readiness, fostering a proactive security culture and allowing for easy scalability.

Get in touch to learn more about how Scrut can help automate compliance.

FAQs

1. How does CAT help with continuous compliance?

Scrut's CAT module runs automated tests to assess your organization's compliance readiness at that point in time, by monitoring the statuses of artifacts and ongoing tasks. You can then create granular action items and assign to relevant stakeholders.

2. What to do if a test is failing?

It means that some action is to be taken in order to make it compliant. Necessary actions can be taken within Scrut modules or connected applications to make the test compliant. Eg - publishing a data usage policy, or enabling KMS key rotation on AWS.

3. Can it automate the manual aspects of compliance?

While CAT automates many aspects, some tasks still require manual effort, such as uploading fire prevention photos, syncing policies, or onboarding vendors. These can be linked to tests that track progress and completion.

4. How does CAT streamline audits?

All documented evidence and proof of completion of recurring tasks is demonstrated as ready-to-use test results to auditors, which eliminates the constant to-and-fro between teams.

Liked the post? Share on:
Table of contents
Join our community
Join our community and be the first to know about updates!
Subscribe
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Join our community and be the first to know about updates!

Subscribe
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Related Posts

HIPAA
Compliance Essentials
Understanding HIPAA violations: Types, prevention, and best practices
HIPAA
PHI vs PII: Essential comparisons, compliance differences, and a focused checklist
GDPR
Risk Management
Best GDPR Compliance Automation Software in 2025: Features, Pricing, Pros & Cons

Ready to see what security-first GRC really looks like?

Ready to see what security-first GRC really looks like?

Ready to see what security-first GRC really looks like?

See what a real security- first GRC platform looks like

Ready to see what security-first GRC really looks like?

Focus on the traveler experience. We’ll handle the regulations.

Get Scrut. Achieve and maintain compliance without the busywork.

Choose risk-first compliance that’s always on, built for you, and never in your way.

Ready to see what security-first GRC
One platform, every framework. No more duplicate work.
You can’t manage user access if you’re always playing catch-up.
Explore the future of enterprise GRC
Tired of chasing vendors for risk assessments?

Join the thousands of companies automating their compliance with Scrut.

The right partner makes all the difference. Let’s grow together.

Make your business easy to trust, put security transparency front and center.

Risk-first security starts with risk-first visibility.
Secure your team from the inside out.
Don't settle for slow, expensive compliance. Get Scrut instead.
Risk-first compliance for forward-thinking teams.
Audits without the back-and-forth. Just seamless collaboration.
Scale fast. Stay compliant. Automate the rest.
Compliance? Done and dusted, in half the time.
Get ahead of GDPR compliance before it becomes a problem.
Outgrowing table-stakes compliance? Create custom frameworks with ease.
Navigate SOC 2 compliance, minus the stress.
PCI DSS compliance, minus the panic.
Take the wheel of your HIPAA certification journey today.
We’ve got what you need to fast-track your ISO 27001 certification.
Make your NIST AI RMF journey as smooth as possible.

Your GRC team, multiplied and AI-backed.

Modern compliance for the evolving education landscape.

Ready to simplify healthcare compliance?

Don’t let compliance turn into a bottleneck in your SaaS growth.

Find the right compliance frameworks for your business in minutes

Ready to see what security-first GRC really looks like?

Real-time visibility into every asset

Ready to simplify fintech compliance?

The Scrut Platform helps you move fast, stay compliant, and build securely from the start.

Scrut helps you set up a security program that scales with your business and stands up to audits. Without last-minute chaos.

Scrut helps you streamline audits, close deals faster, and stay ahead of risk without slowing down your team. Because trust shouldn’t take months to earn.

Scrut helps you set up a security program that scales with your business and stands up to audits. Without last-minute chaos.

Tag, classify, and monitor assets in real time—without the manual overhead.

Whether you're entering new markets or launching new products, Scrut helps you stay compliant without slowing down.

Scrut pulls compliance data straight from the tools you already use—so you don’t have to dig for evidence, chase approvals, or manually track controls.

Less manual work, more customizability. The Scrut Platform gives you everything you need to align your compliance to your business’s priorities.

With Scrut, you’re not just adding a tool to your offering—you’re adding a competitive edge. Join our Partner Network and help your clients streamline their GRC program.

Gaining trust is your first step to growing and cracking better deals. The Scrut Platform comes pre-built with all the tools you need to showcase a firm security posture and build confidence.

Don’t settle for rigid systems—Scrut ensures your risk management strategy is as flexible as your business needs.

Start building a security-first culture. Save your operations from improper training and a lack of compliance awareness.

Scrut fast-tracks compliance so you can focus on scaling, not scrambling. Automate compliance tasks and accelerate enterprise deals—without the grind.

Automate assessments, track compliance, and get full visibility into third-party risk—all in one place.

Scrut automates compliance tasks, supports proactive risk management, and saves you time, so you can focus on growing your business. Start building trust with customers and scaling confidently.

Leave legacy GRC behind. Meet the AI-powered platform built for teams managing risk and compliance in real time.

Give auditors direct access, keep track of every request, and manage audits effortlessly—all in one place.

Scrut ensures access permissions are correct, up-to-date, and fully compliant.

Whether you need fast results or a fully tailored program mapped to your risks and needs, Scrut delivers exactly what you need, when you need it. Ready to start?

Scrut unifies compliance across all your frameworks, so you can stop juggling systems and start scaling securely.

Manually managing your compliance processes and audits can get inefficient and overwhelming. Scrut automates these outdated, manual processes and eliminates your last-minute worries.

Access automated compliance, real-time risk tracking, and expert-backed support—all in one platform. Get started with Scrut!

Less manual work, more customizability. The Scrut Platform gives you everything you need to align your compliance to your business’s priorities.

The Scrut Platform helps you move fast, stay compliant, and build securely from the start.

Earn trust and back it up with solid evidence. Scrut takes you through the SOC 2 compliance journey step-by-step, navigating every complexity you face.

Manage your PCI DSS compliance with real-time monitoring and effortless automation. Get started with Scrut today!

Securing your PHI shouldn’t be a constant hassle. Scrut automates your workflows—from risk assessments to monitoring—so you can put your compliance worries on the back burner.

Automate security controls, simplify audits, and keep your ISMS aligned with the latest standards. Get started with Scrut!

Tackle potential AI risks with NIST AI RMF-compliant controls and get expert support every step of the way.

Offload the grunt compliance work to us. Execute manual, draining GRC tasks with the reliable AI-powered Scrut Teammates without switching contexts or bottlenecks.

Whether you're managing student data, partnering with educational institute, or expanding to new geographies—Scrut gives you the tools to stay compliant, manage risk, and build trust at every step.

Scaling healthcare doesn’t have to come at the cost of security. Scrut keeps your organization compliant, audit-ready, and protected—no matter how fast you grow.

Scrut automates the hard parts of compliance and security so you can move fast and stay ahead of risks from day one.

The Scrut Platform helps you move fast, stay compliant, and build securely from the start.

Growth in fintech comes with heavy scrutiny. Scrut helps you stay compliant, audit-ready, and secure—without slowing down your momentum.

Book a Demo
Book a Demo
Join the Scrut Partner Network
Join the Scrut Partner Network