Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council	Press Release
For Immediate Release	September 19, 1996

The FFIEC is pleased to announce the publication of the 1996 FFIEC Information Systems Examination Handbook (Handbook). This interagency publication was sponsored by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance corporation, National Credit Union Administration, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Office of Thrift Supervision. The Farm Credit Administration also participated in the project. The Handbook represents a significant enhancement and expansion to the 1994 edition, which it replaces. These revisions and expanded levels of information have updated sections making the Handbook more relevant and effective as a

• tool for supervision and examination guidance,
• reference source for the industry,
• training aid for new Information Systems examiners, and
• technical reference source.

Although there are many changes and modifications to the Handbook, they do not represent a change in either the FFIEC's or its member agencies' policy direction. Rather, they represent a clarification, summation, and in many cases, a refocus on the way Information Systems (IS) examinations have been evolving in the field over recent years. Most sections have been revised to reflect the rapidly changing information systems environment supervised by the agencies. Significant changes include a General/Administrative section provided as an introduction to common approaches and procedures used by member agencies and as guidance for both examining staff and the industry. The introduction of the new IS Supervision by Risk chapter assists examiners in focusing the scope of the examination on the identified risk areas and performing only those IS workprograms which are related to that activity. The Supervisory Tools section of the Handbook includes expansion of the Management chapter, along with an introduction to the Internet and some of the potential issues it raises for the industry and its regulators. There is also a new chapter on controls related to imaging Technology and expanded coverage of Client/Server related guidance and controls that was incorporated into the Networking and End-User Computing chapters.

The Handbook is composed of two volumes and is priced at $50.00 for the set. Copies of the Handbook may be obtained from the following FFIEC member agencies: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Publication Services, Washington, DC 20552; Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, DOS - Administrative Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room 5009, Washington, DC 20429; National Credit Union Association, 1775 Duke Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-3428; Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Communications Division, 250 E Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20219; and Office of Thrift Supervision, Communication Services Division, 1700 G Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20552. Additionally, the Handbook may be viewed in PDF format, or downloaded from the National Credit Union Administration's web site.