Chapter 3 - Internal Auditing

Abstract

There are significant differences in motivations, practices, and anticipated outcomes of internal auditing programs and activities compared to external audits; this chapter focuses on internal auditing to describe its primary motivations, the benefits and other results organizations expect from it, and challenges and drawbacks to effective internal auditing. The scope of this chapter includes establishing and operating an internal audit function to oversee audit activities and the types of internal IT audits most commonly conducted in organizations. It also considers the individuals who perform internal audits, whether actually employees of the organization undergoing audit or those hired to conduct internal audits. This material is intended to provide the reader with a good understanding of the nature and extent of internal auditing as a discipline unto itself and of the role of internally focused activities within IT auditing overall. It also identifies several sources of guidance on internal auditing in general and, where possible, on IT auditing specifically.