Zeeshan Mir Baz has collected the information from this website:https://www.isaca.org/About-ISACA/Press-room/News-Releases/2015/Pages/Top-10-Technology-Challenges-for-IT-Audit-Professionals%E2%80%93New-Study-from-ISACA-and-Protiviti.aspx in this article said that:
Complexity of rapidly changing technology takes #1 spot in international IT audit survey
Rolling Meadows, IL, USA (1 December 2015)—The top
technology challenge faced by IT audit executives and professionals
worldwide is to keep pace with emerging technology and infrastructure
changes, including transformation, innovation and disruption, according
to a new joint survey from global consulting firm Protiviti and ISACA, a
global association for IT assurance, governance and cybersecurity
professionals. In today’s dynamic and ever-changing business and
technology environments, companies are challenged to manage an
escalating volume of IT risks at the same rapidity with which they are
presented—a task that must be mastered in order to ensure the well-being
of a business. The fifth annual
IT Audit Benchmarking Survey, titled
A Global Look at IT Audit Best Practices,
examines where IT audit functions stand in their capabilities to help
management and the board of directors address these complex issues.
“Rapid change is the norm in today’s business environment. IT audit
professionals have recognized the need to grow their knowledge and
expertise while also updating their policies, processes, people and
technology, all in order to arm themselves against the increasing
challenges and threats presented by an ever-evolving technology
landscape,” said David Brand, a Protiviti managing director and leader
of the firm's global IT audit practice.
Top 10 Technology Challenges
In the new survey, 1,230 respondents worldwide shared their
perceptions of top technology challenges currently facing their
organizations. These challenges are consistent with current market
activity and have deep interrelationships with each other. The top 10
list follows:
- Emerging technology and infrastructure changes ‑ transformation, innovation, disruption
- IT security and privacy/cybersecurity
- Resource/staffing/skills challenges
- Infrastructure management
- Cloud computing/virtualization
- Bridging IT and the business
- Big data and analytics
- Project management and change management
- Regulatory compliance
- Budgets and controlling costs
Regulatory compliance and budgets/controlling costs have moved down
significantly on the list compared to last year, indicating that other
emerging areas are now top concerns for respondents.
Other Notable Takeaways from this Year’s Study
- There are significant concerns about finding qualified resources and skills
– Not only was this noted by respondents as one of today’s top IT
challenges, but numerous results suggest that finding the right people
with the right knowledge and skills for the right job remains an uphill
battle.
- Many IT audit reporting lines are still off the mark
– Having the IT audit director report to the Chief Audit Executive
(CAE) or an equivalent role is ideal, yet many organizations still have
other reporting lines in place, bringing into question whether IT audit
still falls under the “third line of defense” as an independent
function.
- IT audit risk assessments are an absolute must –
There are small but meaningful numbers of companies that are not
conducting any type of IT audit risk assessment. For these
organizations, this is a significant risk given the cybersecurity threat
environment. Other organizations are adhering to best practices by
conducting these risk assessments more frequently.
IT Audit Still Off the Mark
According to the
survey results, 60 percent of the largest public companies surveyed have
a designated IT Audit Director or equivalent position within their
organizations, and yet, in half of all companies, these individuals do
not attend audit committee meetings. Furthermore, many companies still
have established reporting structures that are less than optimal. Having
the IT Audit Director report to the CAE or equivalent is a best
practice, yet 28 percent of companies in North America and Asia use
another, less ideal reporting line. This number is as high as 33 percent
in Latin America and 41 percent in Europe
"Organizations need to ensure that they address effective IT audit
management through a number of controls, including treating IT and
cybersecurity risks as strategic-level risks, operating as a truly
independent and impartial function, and allotting the necessary
resources and expertise, whether internal or external, to help the
organization identify and manage its IT risks effectively," said
Christos Dimitriadis, international president of ISACA.
By definition, IT auditors work in collaboration with executive
management, the board of directors, IT, legal, human resources and
numerous other departments to help their organizations mitigate and
control an escalating volume of IT risks that could cripple the
enterprise.
On a positive note, the ISACA-Protiviti survey revealed noticeable
uptick in the frequency with which IT audit risk assessment are updated
by organizations. However, the number of organizations conducting
continual assessments still remains low – around 16 percent for even the
largest companies.
Globally, respondents cited COBIT as the most accepted industry
framework on which the IT audit risk assessment is based, followed by
COSO, ISO and ITIL. In practice, organizations may utilize a combination
of these frameworks to complete their risk assessments.
About the Survey Report and Resources Available
The fifth annual IT Audit Benchmarking Survey consisted of a series
of questions grouped into five categories: Today's Top Technology
Challenges; IT Audit in Relation to the Internal Audit Department;
Assessing IT Risks; Audit Plan; and Staff Skills and Capabilities. The
survey report, along with an infographic and a short video, is available
for complimentary download at
www.isaca.org/2015itauditstudy and
www.protiviti.com/ITauditsurvey.
Webinar on December 9
Key insights from the
survey will be discussed by Brand who will be joined by Bob Kress,
managing director of Global IT Audit at Accenture, and Nancy Cohen,
director of Privacy and Assurance Practices at ISACA, in a complimentary
one-hour webinar on December 9, 2015 at 9:00 a.m. PST. Please register
at
www.protiviti.com/webinars.
About Protiviti
Protiviti (
www.protiviti.com)
is a global consulting firm that helps companies solve problems in
finance, technology, operations, governance, risk and internal audit,
and has served more than 60 percent of
Fortune 1000
® and 35 percent of
Fortune Global 500
®companies.
Protiviti and its independently owned Member Firms serve clients
through a network of more than 70 locations in over 20 countries. The
firm also works with smaller, growing companies, including those looking
to go public, as well as with government agencies.
Named to the 2015
Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For
® list,
Protiviti is a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Half (NYSE: RHI).
Founded in 1948, Robert Half is a member of the S&P 500 index.
About ISACA
ISACA (
isaca.org) helps global
professionals lead, adapt and assure trust in an evolving digital world
by offering innovative and world-class knowledge, standards, networking,
credentialing and career development. Established in 1969, ISACA is a
global nonprofit association of 140,000 professionals in 180 countries.
ISACA also offers the Cybersecurity Nexus (CSX), a holistic
cybersecurity resource, and COBIT, a business framework to govern
enterprise technology.
Contacts:
Kathy Keller, +1.650.234.6252,
kathy.keller@protiviti.com
Joanne Duffer, +1.847.660.5564,
news@isaca.org
Protiviti is not licensed or registered as a public accounting
firm and does not issue opinions on financial statements or offer
attestation services.
Editor's Note: Infographic (in JPEG and PDF) and photos available upon request.
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