Why carry out an IT audit?

It is a fact that the proper functioning of your IT environment directly influences the efficiency and productivity of your employees. However, your information system has a tendency to deteriorate for various reasons: wear and tear of hardware, potential configuration errors, poor installations, unrealized updates, etc. It is therefore essential to carry out an IT audit, allowing you to increase the security and performance of your systems, as well as to better understand how it works.

The advantages of the IT audit

The IT audit has many advantages, such as:

     – Making a complete inventory of fixtures:

The IT audit will give you a global vision of your IT infrastructure, by making an inventory of the different elements that make up your IT environment.

Thanks to this inventory, you will have a better knowledge of your environment and therefore, you will better able to manage it efficiently, leading to its valorisation. You will also be able to ensure that your information system is used efficiently.

     – Have a more secure computer park:

Today, data security remains a real challenge for all companies. A simple attack can force you to stop your activity, generating a significant economic cost.

Thanks to the IT audit, potential security flaws in your information system (network status, data access, vulnerable applications, lack of updates, ineffective antivirus,etc.) can be detected in time, enabling you to limit these risks as much as possible by implementing measurers to optimise your IT environment.

     – Maximise your company’s productivity:

The realization of an IT audit will allow:

– Considerable savings In terms of time and money: the anticipation of possible malfunctions will enable you to react in a preventive manner and thus greatly reduce the time devoted to repairing the various breakdowns and the related costs and limit the time of business interruption caused by these breakdowns;

– An improvement in the operation of your computer park: the IT audit will highlight various points for improvement (modification of obsolete hardware, new update to be carried out, change of configuration, etc.), so that your IT system meets the real needs of your company, as well as the requirements of the market. This will have a direct impact on your productivity, making your company more efficient.

     – Complying with the law

Every company must comply with the legislation in force. In the field of IT, you are notably required to guarantee the protection of personal data (GDPR), but this doesn’t stop here!

In this case, the IT audit will not only be able to identify the various points where the legislation is not respected, but will also advise you in the choice of solutions guaranteeing you compliance.

How does an IT audit take place?

In concrete terms, the IT audit is carried out in 4 stages, namely:

• The preparation of the audit where the scope to be studied will be defined according to your needs,
• Carrying out a mapping of the information system,
• Setting up the various tests required,
• The delivery of a detailed and complete report including the diagnosis and the various recommendations presented in the form of an action plan.

Which elements can be audited?

It is important to take into account all the elements of the information system as well as their various interconnections:

• hardware: fixed stations, laptops, tablets, mobile phones, etc.
• servers: backup, encryption, management, etc.
• operating systems: versions, updates, …
• the software used: business software, management software, antivirus software, messaging software, etc.
• network infrastructure: WAN connectivity, router, wireless access point, DNS, …
• telecom infrastructure
• data: authentication, access management, …
•  …

In short, although it is not mandatory, an IT audit is more than recommended for any type of company! This, in order to have good risk management and maximise the company’s productivity. The detailed report provided by your service provider will indeed give you a clear idea of what works and what needs to be changed/improved within your IT environment.