Anecdotes

We selected Anecdotes over other GRC tools because of its many relevant plugins. Since connecting, we've automated most of our evidence collection, saving substantial time. Some features I wanted were missing, but they added them to their roadmap. For instance, specific fields weren't available from one plugin, but the support and integration teams quickly pulled the data and added it to the evidence. I've used the platform for SOC 2, and it's saved a lot of time. The auditor had access to the platform directly, so I didn't need to export anything.

What I like most about Anecdotes is the number of frameworks and features included in their pricing. The UI is clean and easy to navigate, and integrations cover many popular SaaS apps. Policy templates are great for those unfamiliar with writing info sec policies. You can also upload custom common control frameworks. Pre-built dashboards and metrics help demonstrate program effectiveness to executives. However, Anecdotes lacks built-in security awareness training, instead offering access to a partner platform that is quite limited—no SSO for user enrollment/deactivation and only three training modules for new hires or annual training. Despite that, Anecdotes helps me manage a complex compliance program and provides guidance for meeting obligations as a one-person team.

The team is extremely helpful and always ready to assist, and feature requests are handled quickly. It's missing a few integrations that would be useful, but it helps us with audits and reduces manual security checks.

This tool reduces the time spent on year-over-year audits for SOC 2 and other frameworks. However, the UI is missing some key functionality, and I'd like it to incorporate best practices. It helps with SOC 2 audits and compliance monitoring.

Anecdotes offers a complete solution for a wide range of accreditations and certifications, suitable for any organization in any industry. It's easy to implement and use, with a comprehensive approach. Setting up plugins is a one-time effort, but support is always available, offering white-glove service during onboarding. It centralizes tasks and missions, though there's no one-stop-shop. It's excellent for follow-up and task management, creating policies from scratch, collecting evidence for audits, and managing risks.

I like the tool's flexibility, ease of use, and integration with multiple solutions. The customer support team is very responsive and supportive, and implementation was seamless. Nothing comes to mind as a downside; the team has been very supportive. It's great for risk management and control mapping.

Anecdotes lets me connect our tools to monitor compliance continuously. It integrates with 90% of our systems, including AWS, HR platforms, and most security tools. These integrations form the foundation for control requirements that can be easily mapped to frameworks like SOC 2, HIPAA, PCI, ISO27001, and CSA CoC GDPR. With 26 frameworks supported, it offers more coverage than many other compliance tools. My favorite feature is the Evidence Pool: evidence from integrated tools comes in via API calls, and Anecdotes automatically maps relevant data into intuitive table views. You can filter for exceptions, some predefined, or set custom rules. This also allows me to spot-check what's happening in our systems. All connections are read-only, giving me visibility into systems I don't have direct access to, showing only compliance-relevant info. The tool handles basic tasks well. Policy management is straightforward, you can create custom controls or requirements, and you can always upload screenshots or document-based evidence, all very user-friendly. Regarding frameworks, they map evidence at the requirement level, not the control level. For example, a requirement like 'User Access Reviews' holds your chosen evidence, which Anecdotes then maps to controls across all your frameworks. If you have different scopes per framework, you can change the evidence per framework because they don't tie controls together. The Anecdotes team is fantastic. Onboarding was delightful, and their customer success manager presence is unmatched. I highly recommend this tool for SaaS compliance. I frequently use the JIRA/Confluence integration since much audit evidence lives there. Sometimes connecting to these can time out when linking to a requirement, but retrying immediately works. It's excellent for audits and continuous monitoring.

I appreciate its ease of use and the valuable integrations that go beyond surface-level control checks. It provides early access to beta frameworks like NIST CSF 2.0, and offers detailed control insights that competitors lack. Unlike others, it's not focused on rushing you through a SOC 2 audit; instead, it prioritizes the controls behind the evidence. I have no complaints—this tool is excellent for continuous compliance monitoring. It gives us insights into controls for apps we don't directly administer and simplifies evidence collection for SOC 2.

After evaluating over ten cybersecurity risk tools, my team and I selected Anecdotes for its user-friendliness, clean design, and robust capabilities at a reasonable price. The Anecdotes team was knowledgeable, responsive, and quick to implement most of our requests. The onboarding experience was excellent, and we're looking forward to using it for external audits like SOC 2. One limitation is that it can't hide cyber risks that aren't the responsibility of the risk owner. Anecdotes helps our organization lower cyber risk and boost our cyber maturity annually. It also raises awareness of existing risks among risk owners and managers. The ability to create accurate dashboards reflecting our risk posture across business lines is invaluable, and it will significantly aid our internal and external audits. The customization options, such as frameworks, are a bonus.

The standout feature for me is the automated evidence collection, which cuts down on manual work and eliminates the need to chase down screenshots during audits. The platform's seamless integration with numerous SaaS products, coupled with a unified view of our compliance status, brings significant value. However, setting up and mapping certain integrations can be time-consuming and somewhat complicated. Although the platform is robust, new users might find the learning curve steep. I'd appreciate more customization options for building reports to reduce reliance on their support team. Anecdotes solves the problem of scattered, manual compliance management by automating data collection across our entire tech stack. This has notably reduced our team's workload, kept us audit-ready all year rather than just at peak times, and enhanced our security visibility.