A business process gap detecting mechanism between information system process flow and internal control flow

摘要

The information system (IS) has become an important backbone of the modern enterprise, which has caused electronic data generated by the IS to be more easily manipulated and destroyed than hardcopy data. It is therefore important for auditors to assure that the IS is well-controlled and secure. Auditors generally use Computer-Assisted Audit Techniques and Tools (CAATTs) to assist them in auditing the IS, though given the growing complexity of these systems, it is hard to completely perform a control test of the systems. This research aims to develop a mechanism, namely the Business Process Gap Detecting Mechanism (BPGAP-Detecting Mechanism), to automatically detect the business process gap between IS processes and internal control flows. This study also justifies the feasibility of BPGAP-Detecting Mechanism by providing a real case study. The result indicates that the BPGAP-Detecting Mechanism can assist the case company in resolving data quality problems that have occurred in its ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system and can also provide additional information for the company.