Empirical Assessment of Improved Audit Quality Factors Using Computer-Assisted Audit Tools and Techniques (Caatts)

Abstract

Computer-Assisted Audit Tools and Audit Tools and Techniques (CAATTs) audits allow information Systems auditors to perform most audit procedures using computerized techniques. This paper aims to present an empirical assessment study of CAATTs in information systems auditing within the institutions of higher learning.  The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) was used as a foundation to examine the IS audit quality with the adoption of CAATTs by the Information Systems auditors. This study focuses on the audit of Active Directory services, the most popular identity, and access management platform (IAM) in most organizations today, within a private university in Nairobi, Kenya. The main data collection instruments used were questionnaires with both open-ended and close-ended questions. The SPSS Statistical Analysis was used to verify collected data and generate descriptive statistics, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used for data evaluation. The study's findings confirmed that most institutions of higher learning do not use CAATTs for real-time auditing of their critical business systems such as Active Directory; risks identification in the Information Systems are realized long after they occur when the traditional audit approaches are used.

Key Words: Computer Assisted Audit Tools and Techniques, Active Directory, Information System Audit, Audit Quality, Identity, and Access Management, GPU, OU, SPSS