How AI and the metaverse are driving the future of IT audits
By Fazal Nabi
Information technology (IT) audits play an important role in organizations. They help formulate and continuously develop meaningful systems for effectively regulating, monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the management controls implemented within an organization’s IT infrastructures and business applications.
Because of the context they operate in, IT audits are influenced by the need for high levels of adaptability, responsiveness and flexibility. As newer and more advanced technologies continue to emerge, IT auditing frameworks have continuously developed to become better aligned with these innovative changes. However, I would also argue that the current rate at which contemporary IT infrastructures and processes are being innovated is making it difficult for IT auditing systems to catch up in a fashion that is both meaningful and sustainable.
The continued growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and the metaverse has required high levels of revaluation and realignment for major IT auditing frameworks. Thus, I predict that the future of IT auditing will almost entirely rely on the potential for encouraging cultures of responsiveness, adaptability and increased information sharing.
The metaverse
One of the more recent and generally interesting spaces of increased IT development and innovation is the metaverse, a virtual universe that is partly being developed by Meta Platforms (previously referred to as Facebook).
The formulation and continued development of the metaverse has resulted in a number of unprecedented and largely innovative happenings, such as its alignment with non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and other blockchain-backed technologies. Similarly, IT auditing processes will need to innovate themselves in order to develop and maintain meaningful mechanisms for evaluating and monitoring the infrastructures and systems used within these spaces.
Artificial intelligence
At the same time, AI initiatives are becoming both increasingly innovative and more frequently used by larger and more diverse groups. This has created a modern socio-technological environment where today’s consumers and tech users are increasingly capable of benefitting from a range of unprecedented advantages and benefits, such as increased search-related convenience on social media platforms.
However, many people have criticized how AI-powered machine learning processes are potentially infringing on the personal privacy and information security rights of its users. Therefore, in spaces like these, it can be argued that IT auditing will need to overcome the slow decision-making processes associated with traditional forms of bureaucratic auditing systems, and adopt more innovative and dynamic mechanisms for evaluating and reviewing the future of IT.
Altogether, the future of IT auditing will need to develop in spite of traditional bureaucracies and will need to align itself with the highly innovative and technologically entrepreneurial character of contemporary IT systems in order to continue delivering meaningful forms of value.
I believe that one of the most important underpinnings of this development and continued growth will rely on the efforts, skills and commitments of younger generations of IT auditors such as myself, who are not only more familiar with today’s IT infrastructures, but also fully aware of the sociocultural, political, economic and tech-related challenges they often come with. Who knows, in the future, Wipfli could be performing your IT audits in meetings at our office in the metaverse.
Learn more about Wipfli’s IT audit services, or continue reading on:
