Statement on Auditing Standards No. 70: Service Organizations

Statement on Auditing Standards No. 70: Service Organizations, commonly abbreviated as SAS 70 and available in full-text by permission of the AICPA, is an auditing statement issued by the Auditing Standards Board of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) with its content codified as AU 324. As of June 2011, the Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements No. 16, Reporting on Controls at a Service Organization, SSAE 16, replaces SAS 70. SAS 70 provides guidance to service auditors when assessing the internal control of a service organization and issuing a service auditor’s report. SAS 70 also provides guidance to auditors of financial statements of an entity that uses one or more service organizations. Service organizations are typically entities that provide outsourcing services that impact the control environment of their customers. Examples of service organizations are insurance and medical claims processors, trust companies, hosted data centers, application service providers (ASPs), managed security providers, credit processing organizations and clearinghouses.