IT Controls 3-20

• Auditing in a computerized environment

  The auditor should satisfy himself that the control is adequate to produce accurate and complete financial statements
• Planning the Audit


  • The auditor should understand computerized information system activities and data available for use in the Audit
• Auditing in a CIS environment includes understanding of

  • Hardware (CPU, monitor, printers, zip drive, scanners)
  • Software (operating systems, database, application software)
  • The transmission media (wires, optical fiber cables, and microwave links)
  • Network device (modems and gateways)
• Computer-assisted Audit tool and Techniques (CAATTs)


  Tools that the auditors use to search for irregularities from given data, providing more analytical results
• CAATTs


  • Facilitate forensic accounting analysis
  • Simplify data in automated setup
  • Contribute to auditor efficiency
• Using CAATTs


  1. Select correct data

  2. Import data to CAATTs tool

  3. Automatically generate analytical data
• Test Data Method


  Used to establish application integrity by processing specially prepared sets of input data through production applications under review
• Base Case System Evaluation (BCSE)


  Test conducted with a set of test transactions containing all possible transaction types, to obtain base case results for evaluating effects of subsequent changes
• Integrated Test Facility (ITF)


  Automated technique to test an application's logic and controls during normal operations, by merging test transactions into the input stream of regular transactions
• Audit Command Language (ACL) analytics

  Data extraction and analysis software used for fraud detection and prevention and risk management, with features like data definition, customizing view, filtering data, stratifying data, and statistical analysis