（2004）A continuous auditing web services model for XML-based accounting systems（Discussion）.pdfVIP

International Journal of Accounting Information Systems 5 (2004) 165– 168 Discussion Discussion of a continuous auditing Web Services model for XML-based accounting systems Eric E. Cohen * Pricewaterhouse Coopers, 117 Rossiter Road, 14620-4127, Rochester, NY, USA Received 1 January 2004; accepted 1 January 2004 Available online Keywords: Continuous auditing; Web Services; XML 1. Introduction It is with great pleasure that I see the research community in accounting observing the ever-changing XML standards landscape. Those who have attended the continuous auditing (CA) conferences at Rutgers know I am one of the chief flag wavers for XML, XBRL, Web Services and CA. 1 So it is with great excitement that I read this paper (and, as the chief architect of the XBRL GL, with some sorrow when reading, ‘‘While BPEL4WS and XBRL GL represent alternative approaches that are not necessarily compatible, we focus on the BPE4WS approach for the remainder of the paper’’) I agree heartily with the author(s) of this paper that 1. XML Web Services have the potential to facilitate an efficient and effective CA environment. 2. A Web Services approach has the potential to lower (a) concerns about auditor independence when compared with embedded audit modules (EAMs), (b) invasiveness (actual or perceived) compared with current models. * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-585-271-4070; fax: +1-831-741-5661. E-mail address: eric.e.cohen@ (E.E. Cohen). 1 (See ‘‘Bringing Data into Audit Using XML Derivatives,’’ with PowerPoint presentation and textual inf