SAS 70 or SSAE sixteen or SOC - Which Report Should You Use?

Modify Has Arrived

What continues to be often known as a "SAS 70 Report" has long been refreshed from the American Institute of Licensed Community Accountants (AICPA) with new steerage for reporting on service companies. This assistance changed SAS 70 for stories masking periods ending on or following June 15, 2011.

The initial intent of the SAS 70 report was to talk to auditors about financial statement assertions. With time, SAS 70 morphed right into a internet marketing tool; a "certification" for security, availability, along with other assertions unrelated to controls in excess of money reporting. As corporations are getting to be increasingly concerned about dangers over and above fiscal reporting, a whole new suite of stories was required to fulfill the requires of these organizations.

The AICPA's response was to offer substitute remedies for stories built to present buyers of 3rd-bash services comfort around These operational controls related to them: safety, processing integrity, availability, confidentiality and privacy. These options are encompassed in the new AICPA Services Business Manage (SOC) reviews. As opposed to possessing a single report made for economic reporting, there now are 3 versions of a Services Business Manage Report---SOC 1, SOC 2, and SOC 3 reports, each serving a definite intent:

SOC one: Report on Controls in a Assistance Group Suitable to Consumer Entities' Inside Handle above Economic Reporting gives ease and comfort about monetary reporting and transaction services; essentially, what a SAS 70 was at first meant to do. SOC one engagements are done in accordance with Assertion on Specifications for Attestation Engagements (SSAE) 16, Reporting on Controls at a Service Corporation.

SOC two: Report on Controls how to get a soc 2 report in a Provider Firm Pertinent to Safety, Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality and/or Privacy makes use of predefined conditions and addresses one or more from the five vital process characteristics of safety, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. SOC 2 engagements handle controls for the Group that relate to operations and compliance.

SOC 3: SysTrust for Service Corporations Report works by using precisely the same attributes because the SOC 2 report. The SOC three report is often a standard-use report that provides only the auditor's report on whether or not the process reached simple believe in services conditions, leaving out the thorough program and testing descriptions. The SOC three report also permits the Group to make use of the SOC 3 seal on its Web-site.

Critical Alterations to Reporting

The new standards alter the articles in the report, along with the reporting system for that support organization. The demanded improvements supply your organization a possibility to differentiate and to offer elevated relevancy to your purchasers. Support organizations are needed to give a description of your technique. This description is more encompassing than The outline on the controls needed by a SAS 70. The brand new description supplies more details related to the persons, processes, and technology set up to attain administration's Management objectives. The outline also involves more information to the courses of transactions processed. Another transform will be the need the organization offer a composed assertion that is a critical element of the report. The assertion by administration will point out its duty with the precision of the description with the program and the analysis criteria for The idea of making the assertion.

Picking out Your SOC Report

When picking out a Services Corporation Handle Report (a SOC report), consider your viewers. Who is going to use this report and for what reason? Does your audience include things like auditors who require aspects about your controls as well as examination success, or will a standard-use report satisfy their requires?

While you changeover from a SAS 70 report to a whole new SOC report, you will also want to take into consideration your method and the kinds of transactions you procedure. Responses to these inquiries will help make sure you prepare the SOC report which most closely fits your Corporation.

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