First Data 2011 Annual Report Download - page 133

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
The Board of Directors and Shareholders of First Data Corporation
We have audited First Data Corporation's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2011, based on criteria
established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway
Commission (the COSO criteria). First Data Corporation's management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over
financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in the
accompanying Management's Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the
Company's internal control over financial reporting based on our audit.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States).
Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control
over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over
financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of
internal control based on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances.
We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
A company's internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the
reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles. A company's internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1)
pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the
assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial
statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being
made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance
regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the company's assets that could have a
material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also,
projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of
changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
In our opinion, First Data Corporation maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as
of December 31, 2011, based on the COSO criteria.
We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), the
consolidated balance sheets of First Data Corporation as of December 31, 2011 and 2010, and the related consolidated statements of
operations, cash flows, equity and comprehensive income (loss) for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2011 and
our report dated March 5, 2012 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.
/s/ Ernst & Young LLP
Denver, Colorado
March 5, 2012
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