43Success Factors For Practical Implementation A distinction can be drawn between two areas when implementing internal audits
1. The audit program’/‘audit framework which serves as an organizational scaffolding for controlling and monitoring all activities in the context of internal audits and as an interface to other processes in the ISMS.
2. The actual audit activities that include the planning and practical execution of individual internal audits.
• The purpose of the audit activities is to implement the audit program within the company.
• It is a good idea to coordinate with the internal auditing department.
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In larger organizations, it is often recommendable to separate these two departments an audit team leader is then responsible for the audit program, while a team of auditors carries out the internal audits.
• It must be ensured that the overall design and operational management of the audit program are optimally tailored toward achieving the IS objectives. In this way, the organization will achieve the best possible return on investment for the resources it puts toward auditing. The audit program The audit
program is a cyclical process, which includes the sub-processes planning, definition,
implementation, monitoring, and review and improvement of the audit program itself.
• the importance of the affected processes (core processes,
damage effects, business criticality) and IT systems and the results of previous audits must be considered in the audit program and in risk-based planning of specific audit activities.
44• general audit criteria must be defined in the audit program. Depending on the size of the organization, the number of audits conducted, and the desired degree
of detail in the audit program, the specific scope of individual audits can also be directly defined here.
• completed audits must be documented and associated information (such as audit reports) must be provided as evidence that the audit program has been implemented.
• management reports with information about the audit program’s performance and about the audit activities and their results must be regularly generated.