Chapter opener image: © JBOY/Shutterstock
Following the .com crash and in the wake of corporate scandals such as Enron, Tyco, and WorldCom, pressures emerged from governments, shareholders, and numerous stakeholders for companies to increase their financial oversight and reduce opportunities for fraud and to restore confidence across financial reporting. The need for corporate governance became an issue to all public companies. Because most of the data that drive corporate financial reports originate within data centers, the new era of governance has brought greater visibility and need for controls to the IT department.