Auditing Cisco Routers and Firewalls

By Bruce H. Nearon

SAS 94, “The Effect of Information Technology on the Auditor’s Consideration of Internal Control in a Financial Statement Audit,” expands the auditor’s responsibility in financial statement audits to the boundary of the network. If the accounting department has access to the Internet and e-mail, or the financial servers are on a network segment connected to the Internet, then improperly configured routers and firewalls may leave your client’s financial data subject to unauthorized access, change or deletion.

Learn why user IDs, passwords and virus scanners are insufficient to protect your networks during the Nov. 7 evening continuing professional education (CPE) presentation organized by the New York State Society of CPAs Emerging Technologies (ET) Committee.

Attend the session and discover why purchasing firewalls and routers and installing them at the default settings, or having consultants install them, often leaves your network dangerously exposed. Become familiar with router and firewall terminology so you can understand the internal controls necessary to protect your client’s network from the Internet. The session also will cover the nuts and bolts procedures that you can use to determine if your client’s routers and firewalls are properly configured, and if they are not, learn about the valuable recommendations you can make to improve internal control.

Topics to be covered include the following:

• Why you should audit routers and firewalls
• Router and firewall terminology
• Audit procedures
• Common weaknesses, risks and recommendations

  Date: Thursday, Nov. 7, 2002
  Time: 6:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.: registration, networking, free sandwiches and soft drinks
  6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.: CPE Session
  Presenter: Ken Fishkin, network engineer, MCSE
  Location: NYSSCPA headquarters, 530 Fifth Ave. (between 44th and 45th streets), fifth floor, New York City

About the Presenter

Ken Fishkin works for J.H. Cohn LLP, in Roseland, N.J., and is a noted expert on installing and securing Cisco routers and firewalls. He is a frequent speaker on networking technology at professional seminars. He can be reached at
kfishkin@jhcohn.com.

Additional Information

This NYSSCPA/Foundation for Accounting Education (FAE) CPE evening presentation is $45 for NYSSCPA members and $50 for nonmembers to qualify for one hour of CPE credit. A $25 additional walk-in fee will be charged to those who pay at the door.

At the session you will get the chance to network with the profession’s and the industry’s IT leaders.

Advance registration is recommended because seating is limited.

For additional information, contact Gary Carpenter at (315) 487-4567 or gcarpenter-cit@worldnet.att.net or Bruce H. Nearon at (973) 403-6955 or bnearon@jhcohn.com.

To register: contact FAE at (212) 719-8383 or (800) 537-3635 or visit the Society’s website at www.nysscpa.org. Select the Continuing Education tab at the top of the screen, scroll down to Evening Technical Sessions, then scroll down to Nov. 7, 2002, Auditing Cisco Routers and Firewalls.

For more information on the ET Committee, visit www.nysscpa.org, click on the committees tab on the left-hand side of the page and then scroll down to the ET Committee link.

Acknowledgments

J.H. Cohn LLP and Carpenter Information Technologies helped provide the funding and resources for the refreshments, marketing and publicity, and administration of this event.