Big Data Analytics in Auditing and Accounting
Summary
Big data analytics has emerged as a transformative force in auditing and accounting, leveraging vast and varied datasets—ranging from transactional records and enterprise resource planning logs to unstructured social media and sensor data—to enhance transparency, efficiency and decision-making. By applying techniques such as data mining, predictive modelling and network analysis, practitioners can detect anomalies, forecast risk patterns and continuously monitor financial processes. This paradigm shift enables dynamic risk assessment, fraud detection and automated compliance testing, while driving real-time insights that bridge traditional audit cycles. Despite clear benefits, challenges remain in data integration, governance, privacy and upskilling professionals to harness advanced analytical tools within regulatory frameworks.
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Big Data Analytics in Auditing and Accounting publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in big data analytics in auditing and accounting across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Big Data Analytics: The use of advanced computational methods to process and analyse extremely large, diverse datasets for insight and decision-making.
Machine Learning: A subset of artificial intelligence in which algorithms learn patterns from data to make predictions or decisions without explicit programming for each task.
Predictive Analytics: Techniques that utilise statistical models and machine learning to forecast future events or risks based on historical and real-time data.
Audit Automation: The deployment of software and analytical routines to perform routine audit tasks—such as sampling, matching and validation—thereby reducing manual effort and error.
References
- Harnessing the Potential of Artificial Intelligence: Affordances, Constraints, and Strategic Implications for Professional Services. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems (2024).
- Explaining the (non-) adoption of advanced data analytics in auditing: A process theory. International Journal of Accounting Information Systems (2021).
- Is artificial intelligence improving the audit process?. Review of Accounting Studies (2022).
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