The objective of an audit is to provide assurance that an assertion corresponds with some established criteria. An audit involves gathering and evaluating evidence to support the assertions and preparing a communication indicating the work done by the auditor and his or her opinion regarding the degree of correspondence between the assertions and established criteria.

two primary types of audits are financial audits and compliance audits. In a financial audit, the management of a business asserts that the financial statements are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), which are the applicable criteria. The financial statement auditor attests to the degree of correspondence between those financial statements and GAAP

The objective of a financial audit is to determine whether the financial statements are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). The management of an organization is responsible for preparing the financial statements. The auditor is responsible for rendering an opinion on the fairness of those financial statements based on his or her audit.
When preparing the financial statements, management must follow GAAP, which are the principles and practices that govern financial re porting.
Internal auditors are employees of the organization whose activities are being examined and evaluated during an independent audit. The primary purposes of internal auditing are to review and assess a company's policies, procedures, and records and to review and assess a company's performance given its plans, policies, and procedures. Therefore, internal auditors review financial records and accounting systems, assess compliance with company policies, evaluate the efficiency of company operations, and assess the attainment of company goals.

Governmental auditors include accountants employed by