Centershift Inc., a provider of self-storage management software, successfully achieved a Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAE) 16 Type II report after an audit of internal controls by the firm Grant Thornton. The report verifies that the companys control objectives and activities surrounding financial transactions meet the standards developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

The SSAE 16 audit requires intensive documentation of the companys process controls and a physical audit by a third-party organization of those controls," said Terry Bagley, president and CEO of Centershift Inc. "An audit must be performed each year for the SSAE 16 Type II report to be issued.

SSAE 16 is an attestation standard put forth by the Auditing Standards Board (ASB) of the AICPA that addresses engagements undertaken by a service auditor for reporting on organizational controls, such as information technology and related processes. SSAE 16 effectively replaces Statement on Auditing Standards (SAS) No. 70 for service auditor's reporting periods ending on or after June 15, 2011.

Two types of SSAE 16 reports are to issued, Type I and Type II. An SSAE 16 Type I outlines the procedures, policies and controls necessary to ensure effective performance at a single point in time. Type II is an independent audit of these procedures, policies, and controls to verify and validate that the organization isactually following them over an extended period.

Grant Thornton is an internationally recognized public-accounting firm.

Based in Salt Lake City, Centershift provides Internet-based rental-management and point-of-sale software solutions for the self-storage industry. Its clients include real estate investment trusts and ownership/management organizations of all sizes. The companys Store Enterprise and Advantage applications were designed for integration with websites, call centers, web aggregators, iPhones, centralized mail services, corporate offices and other business systems.

Sources: