Objects of control

Essay by mosinUniversity, Master'sA-, May 2006

download word file, 3 pages 0.0

The objectives of control are:

To ensure that all data are processed

To preserve the integrity of maintained data

To detect, correct and re-process all errors

To prevent and detect fraud

Types of Controls

The different controls can be grouped under five headings:

Manual controls

Data protection controls

Validation checks

Batch controls

Other controls

Types of Error

System designers must guard against the following types of error:

Missing source documents

Source documents on which entries are omitted, illegible or dubious

Transcription errors

Data preparation errors

Program faults

Machine Hardware faults

Manual Checks

Even in advanced systems checking of source documents is necessary. Checks may include:

Scrutiny to detect:

Missing entries

Illegible entries

Illogical or unlikely entries

Reference of the document to stored data to verify entries

Re-calculating to check calculations made on the document

Data Collection Controls

The collection of data for processing involves transcribing it into a form suitable for machine processing.

There is a real possibility of error at this stage.

Controls must be imposed to prevent or detect errors at this stage.

The type of control depends on the method of data collection used:

Data Collection Controls 2

On-line systems. These depend on the data displayed on a VDU or printed being checked by the operator before being processed.

Character recognition. With these techniques, accuracy depends on the character reader detecting any doubtful character or mark.

Validation Checks 1

A computer can't notice errors in data being processed in the same way that a human operator can.

Validation checks are an attempt to build into computer programs the ability to detect and report incorrect data items

Checks can be made at two stages:

Input - when data is entered

Updating - after processing

Validation Checks 2

The main types of validation check used are:

Presence. Data are...