PCAOB Issues COVID-19 Spotlight, Provides Insights and Reminders for Auditors

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) today released a new Spotlight publication, Staff Observations and Reminders during the COVID-19 Pandemic, to provide insights from recent PCAOB inspections of reviews of interim financial information and audits.

“Consistent with our strategic objective to conduct inspection activities that facilitate more timely and relevant feedback to our stakeholders, we adjusted our 2020 inspections approach to learn how the COVID-19 crisis is impacting audits,” said PCAOB Chairman William D. Duhnke III. “We encourage auditors to review this Spotlight, which discusses the lessons we learned, as they plan and conduct audits and reviews of interim financial information in the current environment.”

This new publication builds on information provided in the PCAOB’s April 2020 Spotlight, COVID-19: Reminders for Audits Nearing Completion. Despite the ongoing challenges created by the pandemic, auditors remain responsible for conducting audits in accordance with PCAOB standards and rules, as well as other regulatory and professional standards. Although the staff observations in this publication relate to audits of public companies, many of the reminders, even where the term “public company” is used, may also be applicable to audits of broker-dealers.

For more COVID-19 related updates and information, visit the PCAOB’s resource page.

*****

About the PCAOB

The PCAOB is a nonprofit corporation established by Congress to oversee the audits of public companies in order to protect investors and further the public interest in the preparation of informative, accurate, and independent audit reports. The PCAOB also oversees the audits of brokers and dealers, including compliance reports filed pursuant to federal securities laws.

Contact

PCAOB Office of Communications and Engagement
[email protected]