Blockchain ranked as the #1 most “in-demand hard skill” on LinkedIn for 2020. As businesses explore the enticing possibilities from blockchain ledger technology, there are important questions being raised about how assertion-based auditing may be impacted by the introduction of blockchain technology into financial reporting? The nature of distributed ledger technology suggests that the auditor’s view of both inherent risk and control risk and the related assertions might be affected when a client operates in a blockchain-enabled environment that supports a substantial part of its financial information system.
Publication Date: September 2021
Designed For
Professionals in public practice, business, government, and education who wish to be knowledgeable about blockchain-enabled environments and the impact on the audit.
Topics Covered
- What is blockchain?
- When is it applicable to use?
- Audit assertions and the "blockchain"
- On-Chain and Off-Chain transactions
Learning Objectives
- Identify the fundamental characteristics of blockchain technology
- Recognize the differences between permissioned and permissionless blockchain
- Identify how to evaluate the current audit assertions and how they may apply to distributed ledger technology
- Identify how to evaluate different risk factors that may be introduced vis-a-via a blockchain-enabled environment
- Identify a collection of records or a snapshot of each state
- Recognize correct statements regarding how a blockchain works
- Identify a solution for the transparency problem
- Identify a fully decentralized blockchain
- Identify a mitigation strategy as it relates to control environment impacts
- Identify a mitigation strategy as it relates to risk assessment impacts
Level
Intermediate
Instructional Method
Self-Study
NASBA Field of Study
Auditing (2 hours)
Program Prerequisites
Basic understanding of accounting and audit standards.
Advance Preparation
None
Instructor
Cory Campbell
Cory Campbell is an Associate Professor of Accounting at Indiana State University. His teaching and research interests lie at the intersection between accounting and technology. He facilitates CPE workshops for the Indiana CPA Society on various emerging technologies and has been a subject matter expert for the AICPA on blockchain technology, data analytics, and cybersecurity. Cory is also a principal at GRC Metrix, a consulting firm that focuses on digital transformation.