The Role of IT Auditing in Enhancing Cybersecurity Risk Management and Compliance Monitoring

Posted: Sep 04, 2023

• Aubree Foster
• Sawyer Brooks
• Hunter Torres

Abstract

The contemporary digital landscape presents organizations with unprecedented challenges in managing cybersecurity risks while maintaining regulatory compliance. Traditional IT auditing approaches have primarily focused on retrospective compliance verification, often failing to address the dynamic nature of modern cyber threats. This research introduces a paradigm shift in IT auditing by proposing an integrated framework that combines continuous monitoring capabilities with adaptive risk assessment methodologies. The fundamental premise of this study is that IT auditing should evolve from a static compliance function to a dynamic risk management tool that proactively identifies and mitigates cybersecurity threats. Current literature predominantly treats IT auditing and cybersecurity risk management as separate disciplines, with limited integration between compliance monitoring and threat detection. This research bridges this gap by developing a unified framework that leverages emerging technologies to create a synergistic relationship between auditing functions and security operations. The novelty of our approach lies in the application of quantum-inspired algorithms for risk prediction and the implementation of distributed ledger technology for immutable audit trails.