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In late December, the PCAOB issued a staff report detailing inspection priorities for 2024. The accompanying press release explains that the report “highlights key risks, like high interest rates, and other considerations, like audit areas with recurring deficiencies, that auditors should be focused on when planning and performing audit procedures.”  Here’s the full list of the PCAOB’s prioritized inspection considerations:

– Challenges and Recurring Deficiencies We Have Observed in Our Inspections of Auditors of Broker-Dealers
– Recurring Deficiencies
– Evaluating Audit Evidence
– Understanding the Company and Its Environment
– Use of Other Auditors
– Going Concern
– Critical Audit Matters (CAMs)
– Digital Assets
– Cybersecurity
– Use of Data and Technology

New for 2024 is a consideration of audit firm culture. Here’s an excerpt from the press release:

Among the PCAOB’s inspection enhancements in 2024 will be the creation of a PCAOB team that will evaluate culture across the largest domestic audit firms. This initiative will include interviewing firm personnel and evaluating other documentation, with the aim of using this information to enhance the PCAOB’s understanding of how audit firm cultures may be affecting audit quality.

– Meredith Ervine