IIA Essentials of Internal Auditing - IIA-CIA-Part1 Exam Questions [2026]

QUESTION NO: 1
Which of the following statements best illustrates why internal auditors assess soft controls?

A. Assessing soft controls are an effective method of assessing risk related to personnel. B. Assessing soft controls provides more objective information than assessing hard controls. C. Assessing soft controls, as opposed to hard controls, makes it easier to evaluate operating effectiveness. D. Assessing soft controls can help internal auditors in undertaking root-cause analysis.

Correct Answer: D

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QUESTION NO: 2
The internal audit activity completed its analysis of sample transactions to determine occurrences of double billings According to If A guidance, which of the following best demonstrates that internal auditors exercised due professional care during the review?

A. Internal auditors received formal performance feedback from the engagement supervisor. B. Internal auditors discussed with management how data is safeguarded. C. Internal auditors found no instances of double billing and concluded there were no significant risks in this area. D. Internal auditors documented the scope and methodology of the data testing.

Correct Answer: D

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QUESTION NO: 3
During a review of employee benefits, a staff internal auditor observed an ambiguity in the incentive compensation policy. If reported, it could negatively impact the internal auditor's compensation. Which of the following would encourage the internal auditor to be objective in his work?

A. Audit committee review of every engagement report at the conclusion of the audit. B. Periodic reinforcement of the internal audit activity's code of ethics disclosure practices. C. Internal audit charter approved by the board. D. External assessments of the internal audit activity every five years.

Correct Answer: B

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QUESTION NO: 4
Which of the following statements best represents the due professional care that is required of internal auditors?

A. Internal auditors should not perform consulting engagements for operations for which they had previous responsibilities. B. Internal auditors should devise internal audit programs to confirm that the results are accurate. C. Internal auditors should perform assurance procedures to ensure that all significant risks are identified. D. Internal auditors should consider the cost of assurance in relation to the potential benefits.

Correct Answer: D

QUESTION NO: 5
Which of the following statements is true regarding risk management frameworks?

A. The organization should ensure that the risk management framework has been validated by the internal audit activity for implementation. B. The organization should ensure that it uses a universally-accepted risk management framework. C. The organization should ensure that its risk management framework is designed specifically to meet the needs of its operations. D. The organization should ensure that the board is responsible for implementing the risk management framework.

Correct Answer: C

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QUESTION NO: 6
A whistle blower notified internal audit of a conflict of interest between an organization's employee and a major supplier. Which of the following steps should be undertaken first?

A. Attain an understanding of the employee's role, responsibilities, and relationship with the supplier. B. Review all the orders issued to the supplier to investigate potential fraud. C. Interview the employee identified by the whistleblower. D. Notify senior management, the board, and the external auditor about the alleged fraud

Correct Answer: A

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QUESTION NO: 7
An internal auditor wants to compare her organization's governance processes to those of a well-known governance model. Which of the following approaches would the auditor take for this purpose?

A. Benchmark the governance processes using a capability maturity modal B. Assess the governance processes using computerized modeling techniques C. identify any differences between the processes using a variance analysis D. Perform a gap analysis to assess me differences between the approaches

Correct Answer: D

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QUESTION NO: 8
Regarding assurance and consulting services provided by the internal audit activity which of the following statements is correct?

A. The nature and scope of a consulting engagement are determined by the internal audit activity based on its risk assessment B. Both assurance services and consulting services can be focused on controls or performance or both C. The nature and scope of an assurance engagement are subject to agreement with management of the area under review D. The assurance engagement process ends with reporting

Correct Answer: B

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QUESTION NO: 9
A new internal auditor was recently recruited to the internal audit activity from the organization's finance department. What is likely to be the chief audit executive's greatest concern regarding assigning the new auditor to upcoming audits in the finance department?

A. The qualifications of the new auditor and whether the auditor's business knowledge is relevant to the assignment. B. The time it may take the new auditor to complete the assignment and report the findings to management. C. The potential for a conflict of interest to exist or appear to exist if the new auditor undertakes these assignments. D. The knowledge the new auditor may have of control weaknesses in the finance department.

Correct Answer: C

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QUESTION NO: 10
According to IIA guidance, which of the following actions by a new chief audit executive would be most appropriate to gain an understanding of the current level of knowledge, skills, and competencies required by an internal audit activity to fulfill its responsibilities?

A. Identify gaps in the activity's proficiency, based on criteria defined by a widely accepted competency framework. B. Have a quality assessment review performed by an expert external entity. C. Identify a mature internal audit activity to serve as a benchmark for measuring the internal audit activity's competence. D. Assess whether members of the internal audit activity understand and apply the 11As mandatory guidance.

Correct Answer: A

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