1. Identify the specific circumstances under which auditors are allowed to provide confidential client information to third parties.
According to ET Section 391.004, an auditor would be violating Rule 301.01 if the information is considered to be confidential client information, unless the auditor has the clients' specific consent, preferably in writing, for the disclosure or use of such information. “A member in public practice shall not disclose any confidential client information without the specific consent of the client” (AICPA § 301.01). One particular circumstance in which auditors are allowed to provide confidential client information to third parties are, when required by law, regulation or audit contract, to provide a regulator, or a duly appointed representative, access to audit documentation. “For example, a regulator may request access to the audit documentation to fulfill a quality review requirement or to
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This includes; implementing and maintaining financial control procedures, planning, supervising, offering specialized Advice, obtaining sufficient data, and financial compliance (Petrick, 2016). A CPA’s responsibilities in regards to audit engagements include; planning, testing of controls, substantiation or fieldwork and exit or finalization. The first step in this process is notifying the client that an audit is about to take place. The Auditor will then, gather information to understand the organization, review and evaluate internal control procedures, confirm major transactions and balances and test underlying accounting records (Renitra, 2000). The differences in a CPA’s professional responsibility for consulting engagement and audit engagement is that an consulting engagement focuses one a specific area of an organization whereas an audit engagement focuses on the entire