NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dow Jones Risk & Compliance today announced that its Sanctions Platform and Data Set have been audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) against the International Standard on Assurance Engagements (ISAE) 3000 (Revised).

Developed by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, ISAE 3000 is one of the most widely recognized standards used by accounting firms to independently assess a company’s report as to its control environment. The audit provides third-party validation that the quality procedures and controls for Dow Jones’s sanctions data are suitably designed and operating effectively.

This is the ninth independent review of Dow Jones’s sanctions data, and the fifth consecutive year that Dow Jones has undertaken a Type II reasonable assurance report. Areas evaluated by PwC under the Type II standard include data-gathering processes, quality check controls, policies and underlying technology.

“Compliance-related services must be both high-quality and reliable, and this has never been more true as the world grapples with economic uncertainty and rising geopolitical tensions,” said Joel Lange, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Dow Jones Risk & Research. “This independent review reflects our unwavering commitment to transparency about our performance as we leverage our unique access to global media, experienced multi-lingual researchers and automation tools to provide trusted intelligence to help our customers make decisions.”

Best-in-class risk data

To coincide with the audit, Dow Jones Risk & Compliance has also released its annual Data Quality Report, which highlights the continued focus on ensuring accurate, complete and timely data over the past year.

The internally conducted report shows that against a backdrop of evolving regulations and ever-increasing volumes of sanctions-related changes, Dow Jones’s risk database expanded by more than 8% over the 12 months ending June 30, 2023. Dow Jones maintained an average precision of 99.77% across its data sets during that period.

Key trends contributing to this growth include:

• Sanctions relating to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – The sanctions landscape has changed dramatically and shows no sign of returning to former levels. Dow Jones figures show that the designation of individuals and entities by the EU, U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control and the UK continued at unusually high levels throughout 2022 and 2023, with 339 additions each month on average in the 12 months to June 2023.
• Beyond direct sanctions – Dow Jones analysis highlights a shift in sanctions compliance moving beyond those directly sanctioned to those owned or controlled by sanctioned subjects. In the past 12 months, the Dow Jones Sanctions Control & Ownership content set has grown by 30%.
• Supply chain risk – New laws and emerging regulations have emphasized the need for companies to identify Environmental, Social and Governance risks across their value chain. Dow Jones has continued to grow its Adverse Media Entities data to meet this demand, with thousands of profiles relating to human and workforce rights issues. This includes child labor and forced labor, in addition to issues relating to adverse environmental concerns.
• Expanded coverage of the Baltic region – Dow Jones Factiva continued to expand its local language coverage to include Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian. In the wake of current geopolitical events, insights from the Baltic States are crucial in understanding the impact of the war in Ukraine on countries in the region.

The Dow Jones 2023 Data Quality Report and Sanctions Assurance ISAE 3000 (Revised) report are available to customers upon request. Further details are available here.

About Dow Jones
Dow Jones is a global provider of news and business information, delivering content to consumers and organizations around the world across multiple formats, including print, digital, mobile and live events. Dow Jones has produced unrivaled quality content for more than 130 years and today has one of the world’s largest news-gathering operations globally. It is home to leading publications and products including the flagship Wall Street Journal, America’s largest newspaper by paid circulation; Barron’s, MarketWatch, Mansion Global, Financial News, Investor’s Business Daily, Factiva, Dow Jones Risk & Compliance, Dow Jones Newswires, OPIS and Chemical Market Analytics. Dow Jones is a division of News Corp (Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV).

Media Contact
Louise Goodenday
louise.goodenday@dowjones.com