MORAL AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY - ESSENTIAL ATTRIBUTES OF THE FINANCIAL AUDIT PROFESSION

Financial auditors carry out an activity of confirming and certifying the accounts of a company coupled with a duty to protect the public interest, i.e. all those who are interested in the content of the financial statements and the audit report. To do this, it is mandatory going through all the obligatory steps of carrying out an audit engagement. They will have to consider it not only their own interest, but also a priority for the public interest as a whole. Financial auditors also contribute to the morality of business life by ensuring that conduct complies with the law and by promoting credibility and transparency of financial information. Thus, the concept of social responsibility is about fulfilling the obligations and meeting the standards imposed by the profession. Financial auditors which are promoted on the basis of the trust given by society will feel the pressure of social responsibility, but also moral responsibility. To maintain trust, they must respect the profession's specific, principles of integrity, honesty, impartiality, objectivity and, above all, independence in representing the interests of stakeholders. In this context, the social and moral responsibility of financial auditors also refers to the obligation not to act in any way that brings the profession into disrepute.