Technology Issues 99/00

							     Business Technology Trends
Technology                        Management
                                  • Availability
• WWW:
                                     – Business Continuity
   – Intranet, Extranet
                                     – Disaster Recovery
   – E-Commerce Infrastructure
   – On-line payment, billing,
                                  • Security
     account management, etc.        – Safeguarding
   – Customer Relationship Mgmt      – Confidentiality, Privacy
     (CRM)                        • Cost Containment
• Wireless/Mobile                 • “Sourcing” Management
   – Infrastructure and
     Applications
• Application Integration
     Professional Developments
• Spin off of IT         • Numerous Business/ IT
  consulting services      certificates striving for
                           recognition
• Consolidation around
  IT risk management     • Development of Acc/ IT
  and security/privacy     interest groups:
                           Au, UK, US, Cda
• Harmonization of IT
  assurance services     • AICPA “CITP”
   – WebTrust            • ISACA/Gartner alliance
   – SysTrust              around IT governance
 AICPA Top Technologies 2001
                                                                                   RANKING
TOPIC                                                                          1999 2000 2001
Availability and resiliency of systems; disaster recovery                        6   5/4   6
Business process reengineering                                                   4
Collaborative computing applications/Cooperative and client-server computing    10
E-evidence                                                                      10         9
Electronic commerce/ E-Business /EDI                                             6    1    2
E-money                                                                          9
Financial reporting                                                                   7    3
Image processing/Document management/Electronic document submission             3/7
Messaging applications/Mail technology                                           2
Net-enabled applications/Internet, intranets, private networks, extranets       1/2   8    10
Privacy                                                                          8   10    4
Quality of personnel                                                                       7
Quality of service                                                                         8
Security and controls                                                            3    2    1
Self-service applications                                                        9
Technology management and budget                                                 5    6
Telecommuting/Virtual office applications                                       5/7   9
Training and technology competency                                               4    3    5
Videoconferencing                                                                8
Year 2000 issue                                                                  1
          Technology Issues
• Based on CICA/AICPA committees/TFs
• Secure Electronic Commerce, Info Security
  and Control, Internet, Internet payment
  systems, Privacy, Electronic Evidence,
  Disaster Recovery, Enterprise Systems,
  Year 2000 and Training were the significant
  issues
   Secure Electronic Commerce
• Connection is an issue
• Firewalls and security need to be strong
• Hardware and software issues
Information Security and Control
• Security is critical especially now with
  complex systems
• We need to be able to audit and assess
                 Internet
• Kids can use it more effectively than we can
• Great opportunities for clients and us
 Electronic Money/Inet Payment
            Systems
• Required on the web
• Digital cash presents new challenges
  including taxation and impact on monetary
  policies as ability for country to control
  inflows/outflows is diminished
                 Privacy
• Biggest issue worldwide on WWW
• Countries are legislating
• Great consulting/assurance opportunity
          Electronic Evidence
•   Use of paper in audit declining
•   How do you authenticate evidence
•   How do you authenticate working papers?
•   What is permissible?
•   No court decisions yet
   Enterprise Resource Systems
• ERS
• SAP, Peoplesoft, JD Edwards becoming
  standard for large
• Moving to medium
• Complex
• Complex audit challenges
            Disaster Recovery
•   Plan is paramount
•   55% do not have one in place
•   need to look at all business aspects
•   New focus came with Y2K
     Training and competency
• Need training
• current CAS and CPAs need technology
  training
• technology is more than Microsoft Office
    Specialization Knowledge Areas
CISA                               CITP
•   IS Auditing                    •   Business IT Strategic Planning
•   Management of IS               •   IS Management
•   Accounting Information         •   Enterprise IT Architecture
    Systems                        •   System Reliability
     – Introduction to Computers
                                   •   Business Process Enablement
     – Computer Programming
                                   •   Systems
     – Data Base Management
                                       Development/Acquisition
       Systems
                                       and Project Management
     – Computer-based
       Communication Networks
•   Systems Analysis and Design