5.2.1 Interrogation Software
Interrogation software involves the production of a computer program to interrogate either system or application data. Standard programming languages such as COBOL may be used and generalised audit software is also available from the accounting firms, such as System 2190 from KPMG. Specific retrieval software such as Easytrieve from SRA can also be obtained. Increasingly, there is a large range of third party software products available for the development of CAATS. Some of the most widely known include:
• IDEA (Interactive Data Extraction & Analysis)
• ACL (Auditor Command Language)
• SQL (Structured Query Language - used with relational databases)
• SAS (Statistical Analysis Software)
There is also a wide variety of other third party software which can assist in an audit review, such as CA-Examine for a review of the IBM MVS operating system, or the Enterprise Security Manager from Axent for a review of UNIX.