Information Security Risks and Countermeasures in CPA Practices

Ludwig Slusky, Rick Stephan Hayes, Richard Lau
2013 Accounting and Finance Research  
With proliferation of computers and accounting software, information security became a significant concern for individual CPA practitioners and CPA practices. This research is based on a survey conducted by the authors at the Second Accounting and Tax CPA seminar at California State University at Los Angeles (CSULA) in 2011. The purpose of this research is to establish metrics and assess cybersecurity for solo practitioners and small and mid-size CPA practices by surveying and analyzing risks
more » ... at the practices are facing and the countermeasures they employ. The survey reveals the perceptions and practices of CPA practitioners and employees of CPA firms, small and medium, related to cybersecurity, associated risks in their professional practices, and the challenges they confront in their efforts to prevent, detect, and respond to such risks. Among our key findings are: profiles of CPA practices; indexes for Weighted Risk Expectancy (WRE) as well as Weighted Countermeasure Expectancy (WCE) based on the risk/countermeasure significance and likelihood of occurrences; and comparative analysis of WRE and WCE for CPA firms of various sizes and their averages.
doi:10.5430/afr.v2n3p123 fatcat:vbbsxiublbdp7mbjiou7yf6vjq