Fundamental Analysis of the Ethical Challenges of the Accounting Profession in the Digital Age

Abstract

This research paper studies the main ethical challenges that an accounting professional may face against the background of the integration of digital technologies at the level of the accounting profession, generating a fundamental transformation of it. Artificial intelligence is a reality of the present that redefines every profession in society, and the accounting profession is not avoided, with increasing discussion about the new duties that fall to the professional following the inclusion of these algorithms. The paper proposes a fundamental critical analysis carried out in order to identify the most invoked ethical challenges of the profession in the digital age. The research methodology used in the paper is based on a theoretical analysis of the main articles in recent specialized literature that address the issue of ethics in accounting. The results highlight the considerable impact of intelligent technologies on the profession, which have both a favorable impact, by streamlining working time and reducing human errors, and a less favorable consequence, by generating ethical challenges related to data confidentiality, assuming responsibilities and the correctness of the activities carried out. CZU: [657.007.3:174.4]:004; JEL: M21, M41