IDEA’s Reliable Audit Trail that Delivers an Accurate and Reliable Record

by: Pauline Laidlaw

Are you using Caseware IDEA’s History and Project Overview features to assist in maintaining and documenting audit trails? Discover enhanced accountability and transparency with IDEA’s History and Project Overview features. The History feature logs user actions with timestamps, providing a clear audit trail for accountability and compliance. Meanwhile, the Project Overview feature offers a visual timeline of project activities, streamlining collaboration and enhancing transparency. Both features allow you to export audit trail data for comprehensive audit reports.

Watch these short tutorial videos on how to examine each section of a database’s history log,  and how to use Project Overview to review all of the tasks that were performed in a project.

Review the History | IDEA 12 Tutorial (EN)

Project Overview | IDEA 12 Tutorial (EN)

Here’s how both Caseware IDEA’s History and Project Overview features can be used effectively.

User Actions Tracking: IDEA’s History feature records a linear log of actions carried out on a database, including its import and each audit test. Each action is time-stamped and associated with the user who performed it.

Accountability: By tracking user actions, the History feature provides accountability. Auditors can see who made specific changes or conducted particular analyses, which is essential for reviewing work and ensuring data integrity.

Audit Trail Documentation: The History feature creates an audit trail within the IDEA project. This audit trail can be useful for demonstrating compliance with audit standards and regulatory requirements..

Project Timeline: IDEA’s Project Overview feature provides a visual timeline and overview of the project’s activities. This timeline includes a complete history of the project, including the creation, deletion and analysis run. It helps auditors get a high-level view of how the project has progressed over time.

Collaboration: Multiple team members can collaborate within the same IDEA project. The Project Overview feature allows team members to view and filter by users, making it easier to work together.

Audit Trail Transparency: By documenting project activities and events, the Project Overview feature enhances the transparency of the audit trail. It makes it easier for auditors and stakeholders to understand the progression of the audit and the reasons behind specific actions.

Reporting: Both features provide an ability to export the documented Audit trail to include in Audit Reports. IDEA’s Publish to PDF feature allows you to publish the data and history of the database along with any comments that may have been added.