Roles of IT Auditor in Fraud Control
Whether or not an auditor is auditing for fraud, all auditors are expected to assume responsibility for detecting fraud and assessing antifraud programs. The Statement on Auditing Standards (SAS) 99 of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA)2 emphasizes auditors exercising their professional skepticism to identify risks that may result in a material misstatement due to fraud. The US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB)3 also requires auditors to evaluate fraud-related activities as a component of an internal audit function.
With rapid advancements in information communications and technologies (ICT) and an increasingly mobile accessible environment (i.e., wireless networking), it is no surprise that companies are increasingly reliant on IT equipment and applications for the delivery of company operations. IT audit provides a vital role in the prevention, detection and investigation of fraud.
To make a valuable contribution toward fraud control, requirements need to be elaborated on and understood by the IT auditor with respect to the various IT processes and types of fraud, each of which contributes to the development of fraud risk assessment.
While an IT auditor may not be competent in conducting computer forensics analysis, the auditor should be aware of its methodology and capability
Typically, occupational frauds fall into one of three major categories:6
Asset misappropriation—Any scheme that involves the theft or misuse of an organization's assets, e.g., use of software and software licenses purchased by the company for personal use or financial gain
Corruption—Any scheme in which a person uses his/her influence in a business transaction to obtain an unauthorized benefit contrary to that person's duty to his/her employer, e.g., awarding outsourcing IT equipment maintenance services to the vendor that provides cash and/or gifts