Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act: IT Risks and Controls

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) Section 404 mandates that all publicly-traded companies establish internal controls for financial reporting and must maintain those controls to ensure they are effective, with the purpose reducing corporate fraud. The priority goals of Section 404 align with management’s existing responsibilities when undertaking an information technology (IT) conversion or implementation project.

In this booklet, we provide guidance to Section 404 compliance project teams on the consideration of IT risks and controls at both the entity and activity levels within an organization. We also explore how application-control assessments are integrated with the assessment of business-process controls, and addresses documentation, testing and remediation matters.