Perform an activity of auditing, normally means for the auditor to serve their client promptly, collecting information and sharing insights and Reports. With the limitations created by the pandemic, especially with regard to face-to-face meetings, the process of auditing has been strongly impacted on its usual procedures, requiring more attention on issues such as data security, evaluation of variations and level of uncertainty.
Despite the impossibility of holding regular face-to-face meetings with clients, auditing you need to maintain your commitment to the quality of the information collected and therefore auditors must consider privacy and data security issues even more carefully to ensure that the data is transmitted and stored securely. The planning and other meetings of auditing, such as discussions about fraud, which normally take place in person, have been held through teleconferences or videoconferences, always taking into account the critical aspects of data processing. Risk assessments must also take into account the effect of COVID-19 on the client's business and, consequently, some inherent risks previously considered negligible but which may become relevant to auditing of the current period.
In the current situation, both preliminary and substantive analyses may become more difficult because historical data may be poorly correlated with those of the current year. The changes, therefore, will need to be studied carefully by auditing and it may be necessary to consider whether the changes in management's initial assessments compared to the previous period are reasonable. As for substantive analyses, the conclusions must be adequately supported, since evidence of auditing may not become acceptable if the variation is justified solely as caused by the impact of COVID-19.
With regard to control tests in auditing, professionals generally need to obtain original documents to demonstrate the effectiveness of a control, however, in a remote operation, original documents are rarely available and, therefore, the auditor may have difficulty demonstrating control of operational effectiveness, although a copy of the documentation may be provided to the team of auditing by e-mail. In this situation, alternative controls that are easier to prove may need to be tested or the team of auditing you may need to consider carrying out additional substantive procedures.
Contact TATICCA — ALLINIAL GLOBAL, which operates throughout Brazil and globally, with integrated auditing, accounting, tax services, corporate finance, technology, Risk Advisory, business consulting and training. For more information, visit www.taticca.com.br or email taticca@taticca.com.br and learn more. Our company has professionals with extensive experience in the market and has certified methodologies for carrying out activities.
