ITPEC FE Morning October 2021 Question 60
The director requested a system auditor to audit the operating status of an accounting system that was developed by the information systems department and is operated by the accounting department. Which of the following is the most appropriate description concerning the system auditor for this audit?
Explanation
Someone from neither the information systems department nor the accounting department — the auditor must be independent of everyone who built or runs the system.
A system audit needs independence in fact and in appearance: an auditor may not judge their own work or their own department's. Here the information systems department developed the system and the accounting department operates it, so an auditor from either would audit their own department. The auditor reports to the director who requested the audit.
Answer (b)
Why not others:
- •(a) — a system audit judges the controls over an information system and requires no accounting qualification; a certified public accountant is needed for the statutory audit of financial statements, a different audit.
- •(c) — reporting to the accounting department manager places the auditor under the department that operates the system; confidentiality is covered by the auditor's duty of confidentiality, not by giving up independence.
- •(d) — reporting to the information systems department manager places the auditor under the department that developed the system; efficiency never justifies losing independence.
Key rule: A system auditor stays independent of the audited departments and reports to top management, never to the people whose work is being audited.
System Audit · AI-written, may contain errors
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