Report of Mr. V. K. Shunglu, Comptroller and Auditor General of India and Chairman of the INTOSAI Standing Committee on EDP Audit to the 44th Meeting of the Governing Board of INTOSAI.

Montevideo, Uruguay: November 1998

Mr. Chairman and distinguished colleagues,

1. I have the honour to present this report on the INTOSAI Standing Committee on EDP Audit.
2. The 7th meeting of the committee was held at Stockholm in May 1998.The meeting reviewed the status of various projects and determined further plan of action for each project. The meeting also took stock of preparations for the XVI INCOSAI including the framework of the future Work Plan of the committee to be presented to INCOSAI. Let me describe the activities undertaken by the committee since the last meeting of the Governing Board.
3. The INTOSAI EDP directory has been updated and is available both in a printed form and on CD. The 7th and the 8th issues of the journal intoIT have been published and circulated to all members of INTOSAI. The 7th issue is a one item issue containing the results of a research on "Performance Audit Methods for Analysing Effectiveness of Use of New Technologies" .
4. The Second Seminar on IT Performance Audit was held in May this year in Stockholm and it covered 6 themes. Thirty participants from 20 SAIs attended this seminar. The seminar output is programmed for circulation in December 1998.
5. A new product viz Electronic Compilation of SAI Mandates- has been produced on CD for use as a reference tool. This incorporates the mandates of over 125 member SAIs. I am also happy to inform members that, the initial steps to host a Web Page for the Committee have been taken.
6. In the last meeting I had reported that the IT Audit Courseware and a Course Overview was ready for circulation. We have since been informed about its use by SAI UK . SAI Netherlands also plans to use the courseware for a course for English speaking African SAIs.
7. EDI and Paperless Audit was one of the themes of the Second Performance Audit Seminar and this contributed to the ongoing research study in the area. A short paper on Auditing in a Client Server Environment has been prepared and circulated for suggestions and comments. This will be followed up by an article in intoIT. Further a research paper on Performance Audit Methods for Analysing Effectiveness of Use of New Technologies has been produced by SAI Sweden and has been published as a special one item issue of intoIT(7th issue). Though not part of the Work plan, the Year 2000 Problem, on account of its topicality and its potential impact, was taken up as a project. Articles on the subject would feature in the 8th Issue of intoIT. The topic was also discussed during the 2nd Performance Auditing Seminar.
8. I now come to the Work Plan of the Committee till the XVII INCOSAI. We will continue to group all planned activities and projects under the three broad areas viz (i) Information Interchange,(ii) Knowledge and Skill Development and (iii)Knowledge Development and Transfer.
9. In the field of Information Interchange , the committee plans to continue publication of two issues of intoIT annually. Beginning from the 9th issue ,intoIT will also feature on the Committee's Webpage. The EDP Directory has been appreciated for its contribution in furthering bilateral and regional co-operation by providing an information base for SAIs .The 3rd update of the directory would be available in 2001. As part of the established practise of dealing with complex issues through periodic seminars , it is planned to organise another Seminar on Performance Audit in 2001 in Slovenia. The Committee Webpage would be further developed after taking into account views of members. The current Compilation of SAI Mandates would be updated to include mandates of remaining SAIs as also to reflect any changes in the mandates. Members are requested to apprise us of their mandates/changes to enable us to periodically update this compilation.
10. On activities relating to Knowledge and Skill Development , feedback would be obtained from different regions on their experiences in using the IT Audit Courseware and based on this the courseware can be updated. The possibility of producing a CD-ROM version of the courseware would also be explored. Building up on the basic IT Audit Courseware , the committee will prepare Advanced Training Modules in selected and specialised areas. The Reference List of Materials on IT Performance Auditing will be kept updated throughout the 3 years, through articles in intoIT and the Committee Webpage.
11. The committee plans to continue with its activities in pursuance of its declared objective of supporting and promoting development and transfer of knowledge relating to IT audit. The work on the project EDI and the Paperless Audit will continue and EDI and its audit implications will be the focus of a future issue of intoIT. As regards the study Auditing in a Client Server Environment, a revised paper will be printed as an article in the intoIT. The Year 2000 problem will be kept in focus through articles and news items in intoIT, as also on the Internet Webpage of the Committee. The committee also plans to initiate three new studies in the areas of: IT Infrastructure Management and its Audit Implications; Detection and Prevention of IT related fraud and Computer Related Internet Security.
12. On behalf of my colleagues in the Committee and myself , I thank the Chairman and my distinguished colleagues for their guidance, encouragement and support to this committee.

 

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