| Internal Audit Services
Paying the Price for Poor Internal Control
Internal Audit is a function which provides assurance as to the effectiveness of the internal control processes in an organisation; it achieves this by analysing systems and business risk and testing transactions.
These are recent cases in which control deficiencies have contributed to substantial corporate losses;
• Over a six year period a trusted accounts clerk embezzled funds from a construction firm to feed his gambling habit [cost: £1 million]
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• For seven years the company secretary of a food processing company paid herself a grossly inflated salary to fund an extravagant lifestyle [Cost £3 million]
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• An engineering company was tricked into acquiring a subsidiary on the strength of false turnover and working capital figures [cost: £4 million]
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Introducing Internal Audit Services
As fraud investigators, Surelock frequently found themselves working in close collaboration with their clients’ in-house internal audit teams. As well as supporting Surelock in their forensic and investigation work, the audit teams would review the ‘victim’ company’s processes and controls, identifying the weaknesses which had contributed to fraud, and recommending improvements to prevent further losses. Having worked effectively with internal audit teams in a ‘reactive’ mode, Surelock have perceived the value of the internal audit function as a ‘proactive’ tool, and are offering this service on an outsourced basis. Their aim is to provide a resource for managing business risk and sharpening controls and systems, so as to:
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enhance efficiency and profitability |
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reduce risk exposure |
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ensure regulatory compliance (Combined Code, Sarbanes Oxley) |
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assure the board, investors and shareholders as to the effectiveness of internal control |
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prevent fraud and theft |
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