Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Compliance Software

SOX Section 404 Compliance

Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) is a regulation that came from the aftermath of financial accounting scandals in the early 2000s. Ever since it passed in 2002, publicly traded companies across all industries must follow its guidelines. In order to maintain compliance, companies typically create an ICFR or SOX framework to increase reporting accuracy and data integrity.

However, many financial reporting processes that involve end user applications are often overlooked, which creates a concern for SOX compliance efforts, specifically for Section 404.

Companies must create an effective SOX policy to manage and control their spreadsheets and other EUCs. Yet, rigid policy-only approaches are often ineffective at trying to control this type of inherent risk.

As a better alternative, companies should design, configure, and deploy a holistic solution leveraging both policy and technology. Technology should addresses the demands of corporate governance while also being easy to use and automating critical processes. This approach helps reduce residual risk while adding value and empowering end users.

Prevent Material Weaknesses

A material weakness is defined as any underlying flaw in a company’s ICFR. As a result, they create costly reputational and financial mistakes, which can be avoided with the right tools. If detected, they must be disclosed and corrected in a timely fashion.

Apparity provides organizations with the tools they need to fix material weaknesses and prevent them from happening again. Our solution provides companies with the ability to:

• Identify spreadsheets (and other EUCs) that present weaknesses
• Maintain an accurate inventory of all critical financial reporting EUCs
• Monitor and report on all EUC activity
• Fingerprinting- Track all copies and variations of an Apparity-managed spreadsheet
• Version Controls
• Change Management Controls
• Access Controls
• Identify errors and improve accuracy of EUCs