What Security Certifications Should You Look for in a File Sharing Platform?

“We Take Security Seriously” Is Not Proof

Every vendor’s homepage claims strong security. Fewer let you check the underlying certifications yourself. That gap matters, because “we take security seriously” is not a document you can hand to an auditor, a compliance officer, or a client asking a security question.

This guide walks through the certifications a file sharing platform serving legal, healthcare, or financial clients should actually hold. It covers what each certification verifies, how to confirm a vendor’s claims yourself, and where marketing copy usually stops matching the reality.

SOC 2 Type II: Audited, Not Just Claimed

SOC 2 is a report, not a certification. An independent CPA firm produces it, following the AICPA’s SOC 2 framework. The report covers a vendor’s controls against the Trust Services Criteria: security (mandatory), and optionally availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy.

The difference between SOC 2 Type I and Type II is where credibility comes from.

• Type I describes a vendor’s controls at a single point in time. It confirms the design.
• Type II tests those controls over a period, usually 6 to 12 months. It confirms the controls actually work.

For a file sharing platform handling regulated client data, Type II is the version that matters. So a vendor that lists SOC 2 without specifying the type is worth a follow-up question.

ISO 27001:2022 (and the Cloud Extensions Most Vendors Skip)

ISO 27001 is an international standard for information security management systems (ISMS). Unlike SOC 2, it is a certification against a defined standard. An accredited third-party body issues it.

The current edition is ISO/IEC 27001:2022, which updates and consolidates the 2013 version. A vendor certified to the 2022 edition has a documented ISMS that meets current requirements.

Two extensions are worth asking about because most vendors skip them:

• ISO/IEC 27017 adds cloud-specific security controls on top of ISO 27001.
• ISO/IEC 27018 focuses on the protection of personally identifiable information (PII) in public clouds.

Together, they signal that a cloud file sharing platform has been evaluated against controls designed for its delivery model. Many vendors hold ISO 27001 alone. Fewer hold all three.

What “HIPAA-Compliant File Sharing” Actually Requires

HIPAA-compliant file sharing means the platform supports the HIPAA Security Rule’s safeguards for protecting electronic protected health information (ePHI). No vendor is “HIPAA certified” the way it can be SOC 2 audited or ISO certified, because HIPAA is a federal statute, not a certification framework.

A healthcare organization or business associate should confirm the following before sharing PHI with a vendor:

• A signed Business Associate Agreement (BAA) that commits the vendor to HIPAA obligations
• Encryption of PHI in transit and at rest, using current standards (AES-256)
• Access logging with an audit trail
• Breach notification terms in writing, with clear timelines
• Data residency options if the client requires U.S.-only storage

Any file sharing vendor claiming to be “HIPAA compliant” without offering a BAA is not helping you meet HIPAA. So this is often where marketing language and regulatory reality diverge most. For a deeper look at why this matters at the practical level, see our guide on the importance of HIPAA and how to become compliant.

GDPR and PCI DSS, Briefly

Two shorter but important frameworks, depending on the data your organization handles.

GDPR applies to any organization processing the personal data of EU residents. For a file sharing platform, GDPR-compliant means Data Processing Agreements are available, EU data residency is offered, and data subject rights (access, deletion, portability) are supported.

PCI DSS applies specifically to payment card data. A file sharing platform used to store or transmit cardholder data must meet PCI DSS technical and operational requirements. If your organization handles payment data at all, this framework matters.

Beyond the File Sharing Security Certifications: What to Actually Ask For

Certifications confirm a floor. They do not tell you what the vendor’s security program looks like day to day. So a thorough vendor security review should also request:

• A recent penetration test report (redacted for the vendor’s specifics is fine)
• A subprocessor list showing who else touches your data
• Incident response and business continuity plans
• Uptime and reliability history across the last 12 to 24 months
• A completed CAIQ or SIG questionnaire

These should be requestable, not just claimed. Vendors serious about security publish or share them without a long procurement conversation.

TitanFile’s Trust Center publishes SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001:2022, ISO 27017, ISO 27018, HIPAA, GDPR, and PCI DSS documentation alongside its Information Security Policy, Business Continuity Procedure, Privacy Policy, a 2026 Web Application Penetration Test Report (redacted), and a CAIQ Lite response. Continuously monitored controls span access, encryption, vendor risk, incident logging, and other categories.

Is Dropbox or Google Drive Enough for File Sharing?

The honest answer depends on what you are sharing.

For general personal or business use, mainstream cloud storage services (Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive) meet baseline security expectations. Most hold SOC 2 and some form of ISO 27001 certification at the enterprise tier.

For regulated client data, the answer changes. Look at three things:

• Business Associate Agreement availability for HIPAA workloads (some plans support this, others do not)
• Audit log depth and retention (consumer plans often lack the depth regulated audits require)
• Data residency controls for jurisdiction-specific requirements

Consumer plans of these tools are usually not adequate for regulated professional use. Their business or enterprise tiers get closer, but often require add-on features to reach parity with a purpose-built secure file sharing platform.

Verify It Yourself

TitanFile holds SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001:2022, ISO 27017, ISO 27018, HIPAA safeguards, GDPR compliance, and PCI DSS. All certifications, public policy documents, and continuously monitored controls are available at the TitanFile Trust Center.

Rather than take our word for it, review the documentation directly. Compliance teams can pull the specifics they need for a vendor risk assessment or client security review without waiting on a sales call.

For more on the client confidentiality obligations that make these certifications matter in the first place, see our companion piece on client confidentiality rules by profession.

This article summarizes publicly available certification frameworks. Verify current certification status and scope with the vendor directly.