Naji M. Odel 11 *, Atina Zedan Mustafa 22*, Sana Hussin Oghiz 33, Sazgar Ahmad Aziz 44* , Rayan Omer Mahmood 55*
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Accounting Department, Faculty of Law & Political Sciences and Management, Soran University, Soran, 44008, Kurdistan region, Iraq.
Email: aatina887@gmail.com
DOI: 10.23918/ICABEP2025p266
Abstract:
The role of internal auditing on the detection of accounting errors and fraud in the public sector” is the problem this research address. Internal audits support adherence to regulations and promote openness and propriety in the management of public funds. The Research adopted a quantitative approach using a set of structured questionnaires and targeted 109 public sector professionals in Erbil in Domain and Finance Accounting. The internal audit assessment focused on the results with internal audit processes, problems of auditors and auditing roles. The goal was to provide a detailed evaluation of the impact of internal audit performance on the detection of accounting errors and fraud. The data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), where some of the processes conducted include descriptive analysis, Kruskal-Wallis test and Spearman’s rank correlation. Internal audit can reduce financial problems the most. Internal auditors are best efficient to detect unethical activities as they are exposed to full financial records. Research found restricted access to other factors, such as vendors, lack of training, inadequate techniques, and restricted access to manual data and files, which created the environment, which is most likely to produce accounting errors. The ability to detect fraud and accounting errors has also been tremendously enhanced by continuous auditing. However, positive results were accompanied by significant barriers to the audit, which including an audit resource restriction and fear of losing jobs. The research makes a compelling case regarding the need to improve audit techniques, incorporate digital audit tools, and pursue continuous professional development. All these improve the financial management, accountability, and openness of the public sector.
Keywords: internal auditing, accounting errors and fraud, errors and fraud detection, internal control, risk management.