Reporting Privileged and Confidential Information
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GAO-03-673G Government Auditing Standards > Chapter 6 General, Field Work, and Reporting Standards for Attestation Engagements > Reporting Privileged and Confidential Information
6.46 The standard related to reporting privileged and confidential information for attestation engagements performed in accordance with GAGAS is:
If certain pertinent information is prohibited from general disclosure, the report on the attestation engagement should state the nature of the information omitted and the requirement that makes the omission necessary.
6.47 Certain information may be prohibited from general disclosure by federal, state, or local laws or regulations. In such circumstances, auditors may issue a separate limited-official-use report containing such information and distribute the report only to persons authorized by law or regulation to receive it. Additional circumstances associated with public safety and security concerns could also justify the exclusion of certain information in the report. For example, detailed information related to computer security for a particular program may be excluded from publicly available reports if potential damage could be caused by the misuse of this information. In such circumstances, auditors may issue a limited-official-use report containing such information and distribute the report only to those parties responsible for acting on the auditors’ recommendations. The auditors should, when appropriate, consult with legal counsel regarding any requirements or other circumstances that may necessitate the omission of certain information.
6.48 Auditors’ judgments that certain information should be excluded from publicly available reports should be made in a manner consistent with consideration of the broader public interest in the program or activity under review. When circumstances call for omission of certain information, auditors should consider whether this omission could distort the engagement results or conceal improper or unlawful practices. If auditors make the judgment that certain information should be excluded from a publicly available report, they should state the general nature of the information omitted and the reasons that make the omission necessary in the report.
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