Deal to give public companies broader/deeper FDA and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance

Scotts Valley, CA - November 17, 2005 - Delivering a major coup for companies facing an array of compliance regulations across government agencies, Compassoft Inc, a software leader in automated regulatory compliance initiatives and enterprise risk management (ERM), today announced the acquisition of Wimmer Systems, Inc  (Wimmer's flagship product, Data Compliance System (DaCS), adds robust security, real-time audit trails, electronic signatures, and tamper detection to Microsoft Excel spreadsheets to ensure compliance with computerized reporting requirements such as the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Electronic Records and Electronic Signatures Rule (21 CFR Part 11) and Section 404 of the SEC's Sarbanes-Oxley Act mandating internal controls.

"A complex information ecosystem exists within all businesses today, but we believe the first line of defense against reporting, budgeting/forecasting errors and fraud is the integrity of data within the spreadsheet," said Compassoft President and CEO Paul Bach. "While Compassoft monitors data and financial applications throughout the entire computing environment from enterprise databases to Crystal Reports, our recent corporate acquisitions of Spreadsheet Auditing Ltd and Wimmer Systems address the critical need for real-time monitoring of spreadsheet controls for regulatory compliance."

Wimmer Systems' DaCS technology is currently employed at more than 60 pharmaceutical and clinical research companies worldwide.  ABB (NYSE: ABB), the leading automation and power technology group (http://www.abb.com), is a major distributor and implementer of the DaCS technology, using it as a key building block in their spreadsheet compliance solutions.

"We are delighted that Compassoft has recognized DaCS as best in class technology for ensuring the integrity of spreadsheet data for Corporate Governance and Life Sciences applications," said John Springell ABB's head of compliance services. "We look forward to working with Compassoft to provide our customers with additional business and compliance benefits."

Marriage of Spreadsheet Technology

DaCS technology will bring deeper spreadsheet capabilities and FDA and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance controls to Compassoft's existing enterprise-wide governance and control software adding more visibility with functionality for real-time logging and spreadsheet change control, ability to rollback changes to an exact moment in time, selective enforced change documentation, cell-by-cell audit trails, electronic signature control over changes, electronic authorization and approval. DaCS strongly complements Compassoft's newly acquired EXChecker spreadsheet auditing application. ( Compassoft acquired Spreadsheet Auditing , maker of EXChecker, in September 2005).  Both DaCS and EXChecker will be integrated into Compassoft's enterprise-class solution.

Founder Derek Wimmer Joins Compassoft

After the US Food and Drug Administration's 21 CFR Part 11 became law in 1997, it required pharmaceutical companies to implement controls for electronic record systems in order to demonstrate equivalence to paper records. Derek Wimmer formed Wimmer Systems to offer pharmaceutical manufacturers a solution that would make spreadsheets compliant, a long-standing issue due to the wide use of spreadsheets in the industry. DaCS became the first commercial product specifically designed to meet the FDA's 21 CFR Part 11, and later the Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 internal control requirements, with Microsoft Excel, when it was introduced in 2001.

"We are delighted that Mr. Wimmer will also be joining Compassoft's technical management team," said Bach. "His deep expertise in the use of spreadsheets to meet Sarbanes-Oxley and FDA regulatory requirements is as compelling to us as the DaCS technology we are acquiring. His addition to the team gives Compassoft a springboard into the FDA compliance market where Derek has built strong relationships through the success of his technology and strategic partnership with ABB Process Solutions and other integrator/distributors."

"Compassoft's acquisition of Wimmer Systems will blend the best-of-class spreadsheet governance and change management software solutions on the market today, and it provides a significant opportunity for our customers who will now have access to enterprise-level capabilities that address often daunting Sarbanes-Oxley and 21 CFR Part 11 regulations," said Wimmer Systems Founder Derek Wimmer. "I am looking forward to working at Compassoft to deliver new solutions that continue to improve data management, including the control of information regulated by the FDA, SEC, and other governmental agencies."

Customers in the Pharmaceutical Market and a Microsoft Perspective

Representative customers who rely on DaCS technology include Alcon, Allergan, Alpharma, AstraZeneca, Baxter, Bayer, Beckman-Coulter, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, KOS Pharmaceuticals, Medtronic, Pfizer, Schering-Plough, SSL International, and Surface Measurement Systems.

Most companies today use Microsoft Excel spreadsheets due to the ease with which they can create applications through templates and programming. Microsoft's General Manager of .NET Platform Strategy Cliff Reaves commented on Compassoft's ability to collect and analyze metadata from spreadsheets, databases and reporting systems, saying "I don't see this as an easy business to copy." He noted "Compassoft is a breath of fresh air because it deals with today's mess, and shows how to avoid and detect it in the future."

About Compassoft Inc

Compassoft Inc is a provider of enterprise risk management and regulatory compliance technology that automatically discovers, relates, compares, audits and reports on critical financial application information. Compassoft reduces non-compliance risk and increases reporting accuracy by identifying, retrieving and documenting both visible and obscure sources of financial information stored on servers, desktops and notebooks distributed across the organization. Compassoft Inc, based in Scotts Valley CA, has won numerous awards for its technology and holds several US and international patents on its technology. For more information, please visit www.compassoft.com

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