What is Internal Controls Software ? How to Choose one

In today’s day and age, a company’s security posture is defined by the effectiveness of its internal controls. Every malicious act or security incident is a direct result of either inefficient implementation or the improper functioning of internal controls. Sure, organizations can piece together a great number of preventive measures but that doesn’t address the problem at its root. 

That’s precisely the role an internal control software plays. Internal control software allows organizations to identify weaknesses in internal control structures, set up remediation plans, and realign controls to maximize efficiency to ensure continuous compliance. 

As with any category, there is never a one-size-fits-all. Every organization comes with its risk profile and desired end state regarding security. And so you may find it difficult to pick a solution that fits the needs of your compliance environment. 

With that in mind, we’ve narrowed it down to a list of 7 internal control management software so you don’t have to. In the end, we hope you gain some insight into the choices available and pick one that best fits your needs. 

But before we get into it, let’s round off a few edges and understand certain concepts better. 

What is an internal control software? 

An internal control software is a platform that aids an organization in implementing new internal controls, amend existing ones, and track their performance to identify instances of non-compliance and rectify them. 

A typical internal control software system works on two fronts. Over the long run, it helps chart a course to the ideal state in terms of compliance and security. For example, if the organization aims to get a new compliance certification, an internal control software system helps the security teams make the required amendments, create new policies, and align organizational controls with the requirements of the framework.

On a day-to-day basis, internal control software acts as a gatekeeper. It helps keep track of the status of each control and runs periodical scans to ensure controls are passing threshold scores at any given point in time and alerts audit teams and control owners when a control fails to deliver desired efficiency. This ensures that the organization takes timely and sufficient corrective action. It also recognizes when controls are not working. An example of this would be an instance where access control is not applied correctly or if a particular employee has not updated his access credentials even after change notifications were sent.

Top 7 Internal Control Software 

Given the rising importance of compliance over the years, there are solutions for every type of company. And considering the impact such solutions have on the way you operate, it’s vital to ensure you pick the right solution for your business. Here’s our list of internal control management software recommendations.

Sprinto 

Sprinto is a powerful internal control management and compliance automation solution that helps organizations streamline their efforts and significantly reduces the time and effort needed to get audit-ready. The platform serves as a single source of truth for companies looking to map internal controls with compliance frameworks such as ISO 27001 and SOC 2 while enabling the seamless rollout of new policies with replicable policy templates. 

The platform seamlessly integrates with your tech stack and tracks controls at an entity level. It automates periodical checks and alerts the SOC (Security Operations Center) and stakeholders when controls are about to fail. This helps them take preventive or corrective action, fix or implement them correctly, and ensure the minimum threshold score is met. All of this, evidence of compliance, can be gathered and compiled into an easy to comprehend format for external auditors to process during compliance audits. 

Sprinto supports 15+ compliance standards and integrates with over 130 SaaS platforms for increased compliance scope.  

Here are some features that make Sprinto stand out:   

• Robust compliance workflows pertaining to control implementation and monitoring
• Compliance health dashboard that displays in real-time how many controls are passing checks
• Control alignment to help align internal controls with various compliance and regulatory requirements
• Comprehensive incident logs and reports to help deduce the cause and actions that led up to security incidents
• Anomaly detector that identifies suspicious activity and flags it to security teams
• Custom internal audit and compliance reports to track historic control performance
• Real-time notifications when internal controls fail threshold scores
• Trust center to allow stakeholders and customers to view select compliance parameters

Pros:

• Sprinto boasts a 100% audit success rate—do away with the back-and-forth during compliance audits and ensure continuous compliance
• Common control mapping helps map controls that are common across frameworks and eliminates duplication of work
• Sprinto is extremely easy to set up. You can integrate the platform with your existing tech stack and get started in record time
• Evidence collection is automated. Gather crucial evidence and gain auditor approval in rapid fashion
• An incredibly easy user interface to help navigate the complexities of compliance
• World-class technical support to help guide, implement, and monitor the entire internal control environment 

Cons:

• Minor UI glitches
• Occasional and temporary data inconsistency issues that get fixed automatically 
• Has a learning curve owing to new features being introduced

Want to know what our customers have to say? Read our reviews on G2.

AuditBoard

AuditBoard is an operational risk management and compliance platform that consolidates risk and compliance data into a single integrated interface. The platform is a great solution for teams looking to automate compliance workflows, centralize risk and control management functionality, and enable more efficient collaboration. AuditBoard’s reporting functionality is one of its biggest upsides, affording companies better visibility and ownership over their risk environment. 

Features:

• Robust compliance workflow engine that runs automated tests and compliance tasks
• Evidence compilation module that helps simplify the audit process
• Risk assessment module for easier risk identification, classification and response 
• Automated control testing for assessing the effectiveness of internal controls  

Pros:

• Integrates well with the organization’s tech stack
• The reporting feature is great
• The dashboard brings risk, compliance, and audit functionality into a single fold
• The platform offers excellent document support

Cons:

• Customizing and designing workflows can be a complex and time-consuming process
• The audit functionality is not fully developed so some processes may still require manual effort
• The interface can feel obsolete in certain situations
• The risk management functionality has room for improvement

Resolver

Resolver is a cloud-based internal controls management software that helps organizations align their controls with compliance requirements. The platform is a great solution for companies looking to strengthen their risk and compliance management mechanisms while also becoming audit-ready. It gives them greater visibility into the risk landscape while allowing them to implement controls that offset vulnerabilities and take proactive action. Resolver has use cases across major industries such as tech, manufacturing, hospitality, healthcare, and retail. 

Features:

• Incident logs and reports that help provide a holistic picture of security events  
• Automated evidence collection to help simplify compliance audits
• Customizable workflows that help streamline compliance tasks
• Strong analytics module to help monitor crucial control metrics and track performance 

Pros:

• The workflow builder is very flexible—creating forms and building workflows is very easy
• The intuitive dashboard provides an insightful view of the control environment
• Entering and tracking events is quite easy
• The platform is geared to enable a collaborative environment

Cons:

• Back-end configurations can be quite tedious to get through
• Control tests can be time-consuming and may require extensive navigation
• The reporting capabilities are lacklustre and may not function properly without updates
• Some modules may require extensive upkeep

Thoropass

Thoropass is a compliance and audit management system that provides a centralized interface to implement, manage, and track internal controls. The platform also helps organizations gain a clear picture of their security posture and keep track of their compliance status in real-time. It serves as a great solution for companies looking to automate evidence collection and get to audit readiness in a short time. The solution also allows companies to create internal policies while enabling stakeholders to review and approve them with ease.

Features:

• Intuitive workflows that streamline compliance and audit process
• Internal control and policy module that helps stakeholders review, implement, and roll out new data security policies
• Vendor portal that allows external partners to maintain and publish their compliance credentials
• Automated evidence collection for streamlined external audits

Pros:

• Policy templates are extremely customizable and cover most use cases
• Integrates well with the tech stack and evaluates vendor risk effectively
• Documentation is thorough and allows for visibility on compliance issues and status
• Intuitive notifications that alert teams on evidence requirements and preparatory action during audits

Cons:

• Evidence collection still contains manual components and some features are not completely built out
• Fetching historic data is an issue
• Some workflows are redundant
• Navigating to different controls can be difficult
• Collaboration feels rudimentary and may require constant follow-ups

A-Scend

A-scend is a compliance automation platform that helps organizations cover the whole audit process—from audit readiness to obtaining the compliance certification report. The platform helps you understand the requirements of the auditor and gather said evidence enabling smooth, frictionless compliance audits. It also provides security teams with a bird’s eye view of the compliance status while keeping track of risks and potential threats in real time as a result of improper implementation of internal controls.  

Features:

• A policy center that helps replicate, create, and review new policies and align them to compliance requirements
• Intuitive readiness assessment to evaluate how audit-ready the organization is
• A centralized hub that tracks and visualizes the overall health and compliance posture
• Automated evidence collection that pulls data from integrated systems and detects areas of non-compliance

Pros:

• The tool streamlines audit readiness and collecting evidence is an effective process
• Evidence once uploaded can be viewed and vetted by multiple teams
• A great solution for tracking audit requests and collaboration 
• Tracks evidence progress along the audit cycle effectively 

Cons:

• The task delegation functionality may malfunction
• The lack of a tagging or linking system causes considerable difficulty in referencing uploaded evidence 
• May require external collaboration between teams and auditors
• Submission portal can be slow

Audit Runner

Audit Runner is an internal control, audit management, and risk control software that is designed to help organizations adopt a risk-first approach to security. The platform also focuses on quality management, allowing companies to continually improve their processes while staying compliant with security standards. Audit Runner has several applications outside tech such as manufacturing and energy—sectors that require frequent assessments of the processes and the overall risk environment.

Features:

• Intelligent audit lifecycle management workflows—covering everything from planning to execution and reporting
• A centralized documentation module for users to access compliance, audit, and regulatory documentation
• A detailed risk matrix that details potential vulnerabilities and threats that are cataloged against internal controls
• Automated control testing and report management

Pros:

• Audit-friendly evidence collection, testing, and report format
• A truly flexible and customizable product interface
• The risk module is well-designed
• The product enables seamless collaboration 

Cons: 

• The user interface is dated and navigation may be ambiguous  
• The number of templates for frameworks is limited
• Workflow creation is not straightforward and does not contain embedded controls
• Tracking changes in the audit plan and documentation is not possible 

V-Comply

VComply, is a low-code GRC software that simplifies compliance for enterprises by expediting implementation, tracking compliance, and providing them with a comprehensive view of the risk landscape. It helps companies build their internal control infrastructure, strengthen their security posture, and collaborate on compliance tasks with ease. It also helps security teams monitor the progress of their compliance tasks while streamlining policy implementation and approval.

Features:

• Smart and customizable workflows that allow SOC teams to assign tasks a