Auditors have to be prepared for the invevitable changes by learning the mechanics and risks involved in two of the most common forms of e-commerce, namely Electronic Data Interchange(EDI) and Electronic Funds Transfers (EFTs). In the near future, auditors can expect most accounting transactions to be in electronic form without any paper documentation because electronic storage is more efficient. An electronic, rather than paper, trail of evidence is the characteristic of this technology.
Paperless auditing includes EDI, imaging systems and similar technologies where source documents are in electronic form. Taken together, these technologies greatly change the nature of audits, which have so long relied on paper documents. [Stone,1998].
Auditors performing attest services for clients that process financial transactions on these advanced systems should be technically competent to perform such services.
