Final answer:
Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires auditors to evaluate and provide an opinion on the efficiency of a public company's internal controls over financial reporting.
Step-by-step explanation:
Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires the auditor of a public company to attest to management's report on the efficiency of internal controls over financial reporting. This means that the auditor must evaluate and provide an opinion on the effectiveness of the company's internal controls, specifically those related to financial reporting.
Internal controls are policies, procedures, and processes implemented by a company to ensure the reliability and accuracy of financial statements. The auditor's role is to assess the design and operating effectiveness of these controls and determine if they provide reasonable assurance that financial reporting is free from material misstatements.
For example, the auditor may examine the company's segregation of duties, access controls, and monitoring processes to determine if they are sufficient to prevent or detect material errors or fraud in the financial statements. They may also test the operation of these controls by performing sample transactions and evaluating the results.