Is an independent attestation performed by an expert—the auditor— who expresses an opinion regarding the presentation of financial statements. o This task, known as the attest service, is performed by Certified Public Accountants (CPA) who works for public accounting firms that are independent of the client organization being audited. o CPAs conducting such audits represent the interests of outsiders: stockholders, creditors, government agencies, and the general public o The audit objective is always associated with assuring the fair presentation of financial statements. Often referred to as financial audit. o A key concept in this process is independence. o The independent auditor collects and evaluates evidence and renders an opinion based on the evidence. Throughout the audit process, the auditor must maintain independence from the client organization. Public confidence in the reliability of the company’s internally produced financial statements rests directly on an evaluation of them by an independent auditor. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires all publicly traded companies be subject to a financial audit annually o The external auditor must follow strict rules in conducting financial audits. These authoritative rules have been defined by the SEC, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), the AICPA, and by federal law (Sarbanes-Oxley [SOX] Act of 2002). o With the passage of SOX, Congress established the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), which has to a great extent replaced the function served by the FASB, and some of the functions of the AICPA. o Regardless, under federal law, the SEC has final authority for financial auditing.