The Sarbanes-Oxley act of 2002 and internal control

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was enacted in 2002 on the purpose of regaining confidence in the market after accounting scandals in U.S. such as Enron, Worldcom and Tyco, which caused very serious consequences, had occured. Some regulations related to internal control system were included in some sections of The Sarbanes-Oxley Act. These regulations considerably effected not only internal control systems but also company management, independent audit, internal audit and audit committee which constitute the environment of internal control systems of the companies. Inclusion of these regulations in this act related to internal control systems revealed the importance of the internal controls in the prevention of the company from potential frauds and unexpected cases that could lead to sanctions. No doubt, an internal control system that operates efficently streghtens the structure of the company and plays an important role in increasing confidence in the market again. It will lead to a result in favor of all respective parties and in particular to companies and investors when respective parties, who are responsible for complying with regulations related to internal controls in The Sarbanes-Oxley Act, fulfill their responsibilities in all seriousness. Key Words : Fraud, Internal Control, The Sarbanes-Oxley Act.