Audit of a CASE Environment

Abstract

The diffusion of CASE tools, along with the ever more pressing problems surrounding the management of the systems development department, has meant that themes related to internal control and audit of a CASE environment are of increasing interest. In fact, the high cost of introducing CASE technology added to the potential improvement in productivity and quality have made it one of the most important areas for the Information Systems auditor. In this paper we will deal with some of the questions that have to be taken into account when auditing a CASE environment. Our aim is not to offer exhaustive checklists of factors of influence in this kind of environment, but rather to reflect upon some themes that have been dealt with throughout in the literature but from a different perspective to that of the information systems audit. In order to do this we will begin by briefly introducing the basic concepts of the information systems audit, giving a brief explanation of the different methodologies that are used in this area. We will also analize the risks that must be taken into account when installing a CASE tool.