According to the announcement Wednesday, the SAS 70 Type II audit, a demanding third-party evaluation, was carried out by independent service auditor Deloitte & Touche (deloitte.com) to assure data center clients it has in place the necessary procedures to manage and protect data.

Scottsdale, Arizona-based i/o Data Centers is a data center operator and partner of CrystalTech Web Hosting (crystaltech.com), a hosting firm owned by the Newtek Technology Services division of Newtek Business Services (newtekbusinessservices.com).

"The completion of the SAS 70 Type II audit at i/o Data Centers further illustrates why we chose to locate our data center and network operations at its Scottsdale facility," Newtek Technology Services president and chief operating officer Robert Cichon said in a statement. "Our commitment to providing a safe and secure hosting environment goes beyond the controls we have in place; it is just as critical that our partners and service providers adhere to this commitment as well."

i/o Data Centers senior managing director Tony Wanger said his company "designs, builds and operates best-in-class data centers." The company produces raised-floor data centers that include uninterruptible, conditioned power and network neutral telecommunications access.

"By putting our controls and procedures through the rigorous SAS 70 process, our customers, like CrystalTech Web Hosting, have confidence that they can rely on the services provided by i/o," Wanger said in a statement.