Service Organization "Written Statement of Assertion" | ISAE 3402

The ISAE 3402 standard will also require service organizations to provide the service auditor with a "written statement of assertion". This statement, which was not a part of the AICPA SAS 70 auditing standard, will form a critical component of any assurance report issued under the ISAE 3402 standard, be it a Type 1 or Type 2 report.

So what exactly is the "written statement of assertion"? It essentially is a document drafted by the service organization, provided to the service auditor, for which it contains a number of clauses about the service organization's "system" along with additional information, such as the design of controls (Type 1) and the operating effectiveness of the controls (Type 2). It is important to note that, according to the final ISAE 3402 standard, (released December 2009 by the International Federation of Accountants); this assertion may be based on the service organization's monitoring activities.

The final ISAE 3402 standard give two excellent examples of this written assertion, which can be found in ISAE 3402, Assurance Reports on Controls at a Service Organization (December 2009).

The ISAE 3402 final standard provides an example of a Type 2 Service Organization's Assertion, while also providing an example of a Type 1 Service Organization's Assertion.

Your service auditor you engage with for an ISAE 3402 assurance report will be able to help assist you on any matters regarding the service organization's written assertion.  Please note that within the written assertion, a number of clauses will be asserted to regarding the description of the service organization's "system", which is discussed also in detail within this ISAE 3402 Resource Guide, provided by NDB Accountants & Consultants.