ACC 574 – Student Notes

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course focuses on the assurances given to financial statements and other documents by the independent auditor in the context of auditing organizations and their business strategies. It compares the traditional independent auditing procedures to those found in the emerging new audit process and risk models.

 

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

Required Resources

Hall, J. (2011). Information Technology Auditing (3rd ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

 

Prentice, Robert, & Bredeson, Dean (2011). Student Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act: What Business

Needs to Know Now That it is Implemented. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. (Note: This is located in Week 1 of the course shell)

 

Supplemental Resources

Audit and Attest Standards, Including Clarified Standards (2012). Retrieved from: http://www.aicpa.org/Research/Standards/AuditAttest/Pages/audit%20and%20attest%20standards.aspx

Fan, Q., & Zhang, X. J. (2012). Accounting Conservatism, Aggregation, and Information Quality. Contemporary Accounting Research, 29, 38-56.

McNeal, A. (2010). What’s your fraud IQ? Journal of Accountancy, 209(5), 50-52.

 

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

1. Assess the impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other regulatory requirements on the ability of public accounting firms and professionals’ ability to provide advisory services.

2. Evaluate the conceptual framework model that links general controls, application controls, and financial data integrity, and the sufficiency related to establish internal controls.

3. Assess how security and controls processes related to networks, operating systems, and data management are designed and implemented to create sufficient controls over organizational assets.

4. Evaluate the factors that impact the risks, controls, and tests of controls related to information technology governance, including those related to outsourcing.

5. Explore various computer-assisted audit tools and techniques for auditing operating and database systems for establishing a control environment in various business environments.

6. Evaluate the key activities requirements that constitute the system development life cycle (SDLC).

7. Examine the objectives related to the effective implementation of transaction processing and financial reporting systems.

8. Analyze various fraud schemes, determine the implications for the audit, and identify fraud detection techniques.

9. Assess the risks and benefits of implementing operating systems, communication networks, Electronic Data Interchange, and PC-based accounting systems.

10. Evaluate auditing procedures and techniques to audit the revenue and expense cycles to meet various business requirements.

11. Examine Enterprise Resource Planning Systems and the auditing issues related to implementation and control.

12. Analyze issues related to automated procedures, internal control, and audit tests.

13. Use technology and information resources to research issues in emerging auditing technologies.

14. Write clearly and concisely about emerging auditing technologies using proper writing mechanics.

 

WEEKLY COURSE SCHEDULE

The standard requirement for a 4.5 credit hour course is for students to spend 13.5 hours in weekly work. This includes preparation, activities, and evaluation regardless of delivery mode.

Week

Preparation, Activities, and Evaluation

Points

1

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 1: Auditing and Internal Control

· Student Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (Note: This is located in Week 1 of the course shell)

· e-Activity

· Visit the Website for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), located at http://www.aicpa.org/Pages/Default.aspx, and review the qualifications for becoming a CPA under Licensure. Be prepared to discuss.

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· None

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20

2

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 2: Auditing IT Governance and Control

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· Assignment 1: SOX Regulations

 

 

 

 

20

 

240

3

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 3: Security Part I: Auditing Operating Systems and Networks

· Chapter 4: Security Part 2: Auditing Database Systems

· e-Activity

· Visit the Website for the AICPA, located at http://www.aicpa.org/Pages/Default.aspx, and review AICPA News. Be prepared to discuss.

· Discussions

Evaluation

· None

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20

 

4

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 5: Systems Development and Program Change Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· Assignment 2: Operating and Database Systems

 

 

 

 

20

 

240

5

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 6: Transaction Processing and Financial Reporting Systems Overview

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· None

 

 

 

 

 

20

 

 

6

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 7: Computer-Assisted Audit Tools and Techniques

· e-Activity

· Review the Website for International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) located at http://www.ifrs.org/Pages/default.aspx. Identify which companies are slated to begin using IFRS. Be prepared to discuss.

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· Assignment 3: PWC Audit Scandal and Fraud

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20

320

7

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 8: Data Structure and CAATT’s for Data Extraction

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· None

 

 

 

 

20

 

 

8

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 9: Auditing the Revenue Cycle

· Chapter 10: Auditing the Expenditure Cycle

· e-Activity

· Research the Internet in order to review emerging issues identified by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). Be prepared to discuss.

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· Assignment 4: Emerging Auditing Issues

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20 320

9

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 11: Enterprise Resource Planning Systems

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· None

 

 

 

 

20

 

 

10

Preparation

· Reading(s)

· Chapter 12: Business Ethics, Fraud, and Fraud Detection

· e-Activity

· Visit the Securities and Exchange Website, located at http://www.sec.gov/, and review the Theft Red Flag Rules. Be prepared to discuss.

 

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· Assignment 5: Comprehensive Audit Plan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20 300

11

Preparation

· Reading(s): None

Activities

· Discussions

Evaluation

· None

 

 

 

20

 

 

 

GRADING SCALE – GRADUATE

Assignment

Total Points

% of

Grade

Assignment 1: SOX Regulations

240

15%

Assignment 2: Assignment 2: Operating and Database Systems

240

15%

Assignment 3: PWC Audit Scandal and Fraud

320

19%

Assignment 4: Emerging Audit Issues

320

19%

Assignment 5: Comprehensive Audit Plan

300

18%

Participation (22 discussions worth 10 points apiece)

220

14%

Totals

1,640

100%

 

 

Points

Percentage

Grade

1,476 – 1,640

90% – 100%

A

1,312 – 1,475

80% – 89%

B

1,148 – 1,311

70% – 79%

C

Below 1,148

Below 70%

F

 

 

 

 

 

ACC 574 – Emerging Auditing Technologies

 

 

 

©2013 Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University Confidential and Proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University.

ACC 574 Student Version 1132 (SME1197 11-6-2012) Final Page 1 of 3

Assignment 1: SOX Regulations

Due Week 2 and worth 240 points

 

Review the Student Guide to Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) located in Week 1 of the course shell, and other current activity or trends related to SOX compliance and implementation for publically traded companies.

 

Write a five to seven (5-7) page paper in which you:

1. Assess the sections of SOX, indicating the sections that you believe have the most impact on companies. Provide support for your rationale.

2. Assess the sections of SOX, indicating those sections that have the greatest impact on the external auditor. Provide support for your rationale.

3. Evaluate the external auditors’ response options requesting the external auditor to limit testing and the scope of an audit engagement by giving consideration to the ethical requirements and the auditor’s responsibility imposed by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). Recommend that based option providing a justification for your recommendation.

4. Evaluate the cost / benefit ratio for most companies required to comply with SOX. Indicate whether the benefits are equivalent to the cost for minimizing the risk of accounting fraud. Provide support for your analysis.

5. Use at least three (3) quality resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources.

 

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

· Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.

· Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

 

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

· Assess the impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other regulatory requirements on the ability of public accounting firms and professionals’ ability to provide advisory services.

· Use technology and information resources to research issues in emerging auditing technologies.

· Write clearly and concisely about emerging auditing technologies using proper writing mechanics.

 

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