Information Technology and Professional Ethics
What this domain tests
Information Technology and Professional Ethics tests IT controls, data analytics, cybersecurity, privacy and the ethical standards expected of Myanmar accountants. The ethics content follows the Myanmar Accountancy Council code, which is aligned with the IESBA framework.
Core rules
- IT general controls cover access, change management, backup, incident response and segregation of duties; application controls cover input, processing and output.
- Data analytics improves audit evidence but does not replace professional judgement.
- Cybersecurity risk includes phishing, ransomware, insider threats and third-party vendor risk.
- The fundamental ethical principles are integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour.
- Identify threats such as self-interest, self-review, advocacy, familiarity and intimidation; apply safeguards or decline the engagement.
Worked example
An audit partner prepares the financial statements for a client and then leads the audit. This creates a self-review threat because the firm would audit its own work. Safeguards could include assigning a separate engagement team, independent quality review, or declining one of the engagements. If the client is a public-interest entity, the threat may be so significant that the firm must decline the audit.
Traps
- Treating confidentiality as absolute; disclosure may be required by law or professional duty.
- Confusing independence in mind with independence in appearance.
- Assuming an IT system control is effective without testing it.
- Relying on data analytics output without validating completeness and accuracy.