The IT revolution of the late 1980s early 1990s paved the way for information to be available upon demand. Over the years the demand by the users of information has grown stronger. As a result businesses, shareholders and sophisticated market analysts are demanding and are now receiving data in real-time.
The key question of what assurance could, and should, be provided over this stream of real time data needs to be addressed. The concept of ‘real-time’ or Continuous Assurance attempts to better match internal and external auditing practices with IT systems that provide stakeholders with more timely and accurate results.
This thought leadership paper is written to promote discussion on continuous assurance as a concept. All stakeholders, standard setters, regulators, government users, and the profession have a role to play.
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