Question：Which of the following statements are true in respect of the responsibilities of internal and external auditors?

Internal and external auditors:

A.Must be independent of the company.

B.Owe a duty of confidentiality to the company.

C.Are both accountable to the shareholders of the company.

D.Should be competent to perform their work.

E.Are both accountable to the management of the company.

The correct answers are: Should be competent to perform their work; Owe a duty of confidentiality to the company.

Internal auditors are accountable to the management of the company, external auditors are accountable to the shareholders of the company. External auditors must be independent of the company reported on, and whilst internal auditors should be independent of the functions that they report on within the company, they cannot be independent of the company itself.