Category: Featured News

These are brief news articles written by Internal Audit 360 editors. They may contain links to source material, but they are self contained and do not link to a longer version of the news item.

Investments in Data Analytics May Reduce Penalties from Government Investigators

Compliance officers are increasingly seeking technology solutions that improve their teams’ access to financial and operational data, and that provide risk monitoring and mitigation. Earlier this year, the U.S. Justice Department instructed prosecutors to evaluate data access and analysis at the companies they investigate. Recent settlement trends indicate that regulators Read More

San Diego audit

SANDAG Auditor Catches Director’s Overspending

Auditors at San Diego’s transportation and planning agency are accusing management of improperly making severance and sick time payments to employees, and failing to report the expenditures to the agency’s board of directors. The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) Executive Director Hassan Ikhrata supervises an annual budget of nearly Read More

King William Audit Finds $2m in Unpaid Taxes

A performance audit of the King William County, Virginia, Treasurer’s Office casts light on a number of issues that go against accounting standards, the Daily Press reports. The audit highlights 21 problem areas, including $2 million in uncollected real estate taxes from 400 properties over 30 years. The report also Read More

DC Metro Audit

DC Metro Ops Center Putting Riders in Danger, Audit Finds

Management at the Washington, D.C., Rail Operations Control Center (ROCC) fosters a toxic culture that puts customers at risk of physical harm, an audit conducted by the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission (WMSC) says. The 50-page WMSC audit report details more than 20 safety and structural issues in the 24-hour “nerve Read More

Audit timeline

CISOs Struggling with Upcoming Audit Timelines

Timelines for security and compliance audits are largely unchanged in 2020, despite the disruptive impacts of COVID-19 on teams that are now working remotely, according to a recent survey of North American CISOs assessing the challenges facing security and compliance professionals. The survey, a joint effort between Shujinko and Pulse, Read More

business continuity

Protiviti Offers Business Continuity Guidance Amid Pandemic

Protiviti has updated its Guide to Business Continuity & Resilience to reflect today’s latest threats and business realities, especially in light of lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 guide includes answers to critical questions business leaders must ask to ensure they will be ready to respond when disaster Read More

SEC to change compliance definitions for SOX 404

SEC to Modify and Modernize Disclosure Requirements

The Securities and Exchange Commission is revising corporate disclosure requirements for the first time in more than 30 years. The Commission voted last week to adopt amendments that will modernize the description of business, legal proceedings, and risk factor disclosures that registrants are required to make pursuant to Regulation S-K. Read More

Data Access a Challenge for Internal Auditors in 2020

As internal auditors look ahead to end-of-year reporting deadlines, many are raising concerns that assessments may be impossible to provide or significantly delayed. Remote work options are helping companies stay afloat in 2020; however, many elements of the audit process are more difficult in this “new normal.” Accounting standards provide Read More

Dept of Justice Seal

DoJ Issues Rare FCPA Clarification

The Department of Justice released a rare Foreign Corrupt Practices Act opinion letter in response to an inquiry from a company, highlighting an avenue of communication where companies can get answers to compliance concerns for planned future actions. The inquiry asked whether a prospective fee paid to a foreign subsidiary Read More

NCDOT internal audit problems

Watchdog Slams Internal Audit at N.C. Transportation Dept.

A North Carolina watchdog agency recently issued a scathing report on the internal audit program at the state’s Department of Transportation (NCDOT). During an evaluation, inspectors found that the department “has not maintained a robust and viable internal audit effort,” leading to budget and cash flow problems at the department. Read More