Certified: The Security+ Prepcast

Internal audits are essential to maintaining a strong security posture and a reliable compliance program—but who ensures those audits happen, and how are they structured? That’s the focus of today’s episode. In Episode 199, we explore two important components of audit structure within organizations: the role of audit committees and the process of conducting self-assessments. These mechanisms support transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement across the entire enterprise.
Let’s begin with audit committees. An audit committee is a formally established group within an organization that provides oversight and guidance to internal audit functions. In larger organizations, this committee often reports directly to the board of directors or the highest level of governance. Its role is to ensure that internal audits are objective, comprehensive, and aligned with organizational goals and regulatory requirements.
The audit committee does not conduct audits itself. Instead, it supports the audit process by approving audit plans, reviewing audit findings, ensuring resources are allocated properly, and holding leadership accountable for remediation. Committee members may include senior executives, legal counsel, compliance officers, and—in publicly traded companies—independent directors with financial or operational expertise.
An effective audit committee adds structure to the governance model. It ensures that audit activities are not influenced by internal politics or hidden conflicts of interest. In some organizations, the presence of a strong audit committee is also a requirement for maintaining certain certifications or regulatory licenses.
Let’s look at a real-world example. A publicly traded software company has an internal audit department that conducts quarterly audits across various business units. The audit committee, which includes independent directors, meets before and after each audit cycle. They approve the audit scope, review findings, and challenge leadership on areas where controls are weak or remediation is lagging. When the audit team identifies repeated failures in access control reviews, the committee escalates the issue to the chief information officer and mandates a cross-departmental response plan. As a result, the company improves its posture before facing external regulators. The audit committee didn’t run the audit—but its oversight ensured the findings turned into meaningful action.
Audit committees are also critical during external investigations. If a regulator questions the effectiveness of the compliance program, the organization can point to the audit committee's activity, minutes, and follow-up as evidence of strong governance. This is particularly important in industries such as finance, healthcare, and energy, where oversight expectations are high.
An important responsibility of the audit committee is approving the internal audit charter. This document outlines the purpose, authority, and responsibility of the internal audit function. It defines the auditor’s independence, reporting structure, and scope of work. By signing off on the charter, the audit committee affirms the legitimacy and objectivity of internal audits.
In smaller organizations, a formal audit committee may not exist. In those cases, the functions of an audit committee are often performed by a cross-functional risk or compliance council. While not as formalized, this structure can still provide effective oversight when built with the right mix of roles, clear documentation, and a commitment to follow through on findings.
Now let’s turn to self-assessments. A self-assessment is an internal review performed by the business unit or function being assessed. Unlike an audit conducted by an independent internal audit team, a self-assessment allows operational leaders to evaluate their own controls, identify weaknesses, and correct them before external review. These assessments are often guided by standardized checklists, policy documents, or compliance frameworks.
Self-assessments are not a substitute for formal audits—but they are a valuable supplement. They promote ownership of compliance within individual departments and help uncover issues early, when they are easier and less costly to resolve.
Let’s explore a practical scenario. A university’s I T department performs a semiannual self-assessment based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology cybersecurity framework. They use a checklist to evaluate access controls, endpoint protection, patching practices, and log monitoring. The results are submitted to the campus compliance office and reviewed as part of the university’s broader cybersecurity strategy. During one self-assessment, the I T team discovers that one server is missing multifactor authentication. They fix the issue within twenty-four hours and document the change. When a formal audit occurs weeks later, the self-assessment and follow-up action serve as proof of due care and proactive governance.
Self-assessments are also helpful in preparing for mergers, acquisitions, or organizational restructuring. When business units change roles, adopt new systems, or integrate with new partners, self-assessments can reveal where gaps may exist before those gaps are inherited by the entire organization.
Another benefit is staff awareness. When employees are directly involved in answering self-assessment questions, they become more familiar with policies, procedures, and compliance expectations. This increases engagement, reduces the chance of unintentional violations, and supports a more compliance-focused culture.
That said, self-assessments also come with limitations. Because they are performed by the same people responsible for operations, there is a risk of bias, omission, or underreporting. Some teams may lack the training needed to properly evaluate technical controls. Others may downplay issues out of fear of blame or resource constraints.
That’s why self-assessments must be guided by clear standards, reviewed by independent teams, and followed up with validation. The internal audit department—or the audit committee itself—should periodically review a sample of self-assessments to ensure they are complete, honest, and effective. In some organizations, self-assessments are audited just like any other internal control.
Organizations can also use technology to support the self-assessment process. Automated surveys, workflow tools, and dashboards can standardize responses, track progress, and escalate red flags. For example, a compliance platform might send quarterly access control checklists to system owners, collect responses, flag any answers that indicate policy violations, and notify the audit team. This structure makes self-assessments easier to perform and harder to ignore.
Let’s consider one final real-world case. A healthcare network launches a new remote work policy. As part of the rollout, each clinic is required to complete a self-assessment on remote access controls, device management, and employee training. Most clinics complete the checklist within the required time, but three clinics report weak controls and a lack of user training. The compliance team follows up with those clinics, provides support, and includes them in a focused audit the following month. Without the self-assessment, those weaknesses might not have been identified until a breach or external investigation. In this case, the self-assessment served as a compliance early warning system.
As you prepare for the Security Plus exam, you should understand both the structure and purpose of internal audit committees and the value of self-assessments. Be ready for questions that describe audit processes or ask which governance mechanism would support early identification of issues. You may also be asked to distinguish between formal audits, committee oversight, and informal review processes.
Here’s a study tip. If the scenario involves oversight, policy approval, or follow-up on audit findings, the correct answer likely involves the audit committee. If it involves a department reviewing its own controls or checking policy compliance before an audit, it’s describing a self-assessment. Focus on who is doing the review, and you’ll find the right answer faster.
For audit committee charter templates, self-assessment checklists, and automation tools that support internal audit structures, visit us at Bare Metal Cyber dot com. And if you want the most comprehensive, exam-ready Security Plus guide—filled with real-world examples and practical guidance—head over to Cyber Author dot me and order your copy of Achieve CompTIA Security Plus S Y Zero Dash Seven Zero One Exam Success.