The 4 tasks of ECE

The first thing to be aware of is that EuroCloud Europe (ECE) has four tasks, but none of these tasks is to perform the actual audit.

1. CONTROLS: ECE develops and maintains the StarAudit catalogue as well as all helpful additional documents (incl. white paper). ECE performs this task with the help of an advisory board (see https://staraudit.org/home/advisory-board/ and https://staraudit.org/home/legal-advisory-board/). However, every StarAudit user may also provide feedback and suggest improvements at any time. A corresponding form is available (see https://staraudit.org/home/feedback-assessment-controls/).
2. FRAMEWORK: ECE establishes the framework conditions for StarAudit. This refers to the audit process itself as well as to the qualifications that an Auditor or Audit Organization must have to be accredited. See https://staraudit.org/home/audit-framework/. This accreditation is required for permission to perform StarAudit audits. Only persons and organizations listed online may perform StarAudit audits. See https://staraudit.org/valid/
3. TOOLS: ECE provides the important StarAudit Assessment Tool that cloud providers can use to prepare for an audit internally or perform a Self-Assessment. Auditors are required to use the Tool for performing audits, and the final report created with the Tool must be published online and accessible to anyone. See https://staraudit.org/all-seals/
4. CERTIFICATE: Following a successful audit, ECE issues the StarAudit certificate, which must be published online to be valid. However, the certificate is only issued by ECE once all required documents have been signed and submitted by the Audit Organization or filed in the Secure Data Room.

What ECE does not do

What ECE does not do is to perform audits itself. ECE is not an Audit Organization and, as a fully independent non-profit organization, is not involved in any commercial activities (training, consulting, audits). Audits are exclusively performed by qualified and accredited Audit Organizations.

The cost of an audit

The cost of an audit as offered by Audit Organizations like TÜV or SGS depends on the intended Star Level to be achieved (3, 4 or 5 stars), the number of data centres and countries for which the certificate is to be valid, and the pre-existing certificates of the cloud provider. The cost of a full StarAudit cloud certification begins at around EUR 10,000 (3 stars) up to a maximum of EUR 30,000. ECE does not make any specifications regarding the costs for which Audit Organizations may offer certifications; it does, however, define a minimum time to be spent on an audit. See https://staraudit.org/home/audit-framework/

The fastest way to achieving a StarAudit certificate

So what is the fastest way to achieving a StarAudit certificate, respectively to receiving an offer from an accredited Audit Organization?

1. Register a free account (or several) in the StarAudit Assessment Tool and create a project using the current catalogue. See  https://assessment.staraudit.org/?report=authenticate. Registration is free of charge and the Tool is easy and intuitive to use. The instructions for using the tool can be downloaded here: https://staraudit.org/assessment/.
2. Ideally, cloud providers are recommended to begin with a 3-star assessment in all areas, then move on to the 4-star controls if the 3-star process worked satisfactorily. Should you encounter any problems along the way, contact one of the accredited StarAudit Consultants. Basic questions can also be answered by the StarAudit Directorate: https://staraudit.org/home/contact/
3. If you are satisfied with the result of the Self-Assessment, you can create a report.
4. Using your Assessment Report, you can now contact all accredited Auditors and request offers for an audit. You can find the accredited Auditors at https://staraudit.org/valid/ in the section “StarAudit-AAO” (Auditing ORG)
5. Once you have decided on an offer to accept, you can assign your audit to the desired Audit Organization, which will accompany the process up to the issuing of your certification.
6. ECE will verify and issue your certification and handle its publication and communication.