Auditing and inspection are two critical tools that organizations apply to ensure compliance, policies, procedures and products. It is not uncommon to perceive these tools of auditing and inspection to be the same thing. Even though there are similarities these tools have different intent. Traditionally, auditing is considered proactive under quality assurance while inspection is reactive under quality control. The duration and scope are the most significant differences.
These differences are highlighted within the definitions documented in ISO9000: 2015.