DALLAS – August 18, 2011 – Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and colocation provider, Horizon Data Center Solutions, has completed SSAE 16 Type II audits for its three data centers; two in Dallas and one in Manassas, Virginia.
David MacGrandle, COO, says he was pleased to complete the audits and receive the notices this week. “We’re continuing our momentum as we grow the business and enhance our IaaS offering (vStructure™) for commercial and US Federal Government customers. Our customers trust us with important data and mission critical applications. They need clear confidence in the credibility of our corporate controls.”
The audit offers assurance that Horizon has met the new standard for Reporting on Controls at a Service Organization across all three data centers that were previously covered by the SAS 70 Type II audits. The audits validate companies that provide services that affect the financial statements of another entity. For Horizon, such services include hosting and data storage, managed IT, virtualization and cloud computing. “We completed the SSAE 16 Type II audit – and previously SAS 70 Type II audits – so that our customers can include them in their own compliance endeavors,” says MacGrandle.
The completion of this audit is the second major milestone for Horizon in recent months. In July, Horizon was the first company to receive an Authority to Operate (ATO) as a cloud services provider to US Federal Government agencies. This achievement required completion of a comprehensive Federal security audit (NIST 800-53) under FISMA. That process, MacGrandle explains, was an intensive eight-month examination into over thirty times the control objectives of a typical SAS 70 Type II audit.
“This important news comes on the heels of a previous announcement that we also received our ATO from the Federal Government. Together, these achievements certify the quality of our vStructure™, the foundation through which we deploy IaaS solutions. It’s definitely been a good month,” MacGrandle continued, adding that with audits behind them, Horizon is ready to focus on installing new customers and sustaining growth momentum.
“We’ve been through the documentation process to prove our facilities and systems are secure, stable and scalable. Now we’re ready to continue to build on our presence within both the commercial and US Government sectors,” MacGrandle says.
For more information on Horizon Data Center Solutions, visit their website at www.horizondcs.com, or call Horizon at 866-620-7516.
About Horizon Data Center Solutions
Horizon Data Center Solutions provides hosting, data storage, colocation and cloud computing services, as well as managed IT for organizations of all sizes. With three world class data centers strategically located in Dallas and the Manassas, Virginia, Horizon provides mission critical data management and support to business and government entities. For more information, call Horizon at 866.620.7516, or visit www.horizondcs.com.