March 2021 Summaries

Observe has achieved SOC 2 Type 2 certification, reflecting its dedication to privacy and security by adhering to the standards set by the American Institute of CPAs. This certification, obtained through an audit by The Cadence Group and a penetration test by The NCC Group, demonstrates Observe's commitment to managing customer data across five trust service principles: security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. The company streamlined the compliance process using Vanta, an automated security tool, and Lacework's continuous security monitoring, which facilitated evidence collection and the establishment of robust information security policies. Observe also utilized its own product to perform crucial tasks such as weekly user access audits, linking production updates to code changes, and triaging vulnerabilities, ensuring comprehensive oversight of their security posture.

The State of Observability report, developed through a partnership with CITE Research, highlights the growing importance of observability in software systems, emphasizing its impact on customer satisfaction, with 87% of surveyed IT and software development professionals measuring its value through this metric. Observability is seen as crucial for reducing churn and increasing customer retention, with 67% reporting improved customer satisfaction since its adoption. The report notes that 86% of organizations plan to prioritize observability in the coming year, driven by dissatisfaction with current monitoring tools and the need to better handle complex data from modern systems like Kubernetes and microservices. Key challenges include a lack of expertise, context, and high costs, as well as the burden of maintaining tags, which consume significant time without delivering proportional value. The report underscores the necessity for observability solutions that can integrate with both cutting-edge and legacy technologies, and anticipates further exploration into related topics such as DevOps practices and the impact of COVID-19 in future editions.