Prevent and detect unauthorized and illegal access to firm’s systems and/or assets
Warehouse security
Depositing cash daily
Use safe deposit box, night box, lock cash drawers and safes
Accounting records
Removal of an account from books
Unauthorized shipments of goods using blank sales orders
Removal of cash, covered by adjustments to cash account
Theft of products/inventory, covered by adjustments to inventory or cash accounts
Testing access controls – heart of accounting information integrity
Absence thereof allows manipulation of invoices (i.e., fraud)
Access controls are system-wide and application-specific
Access controls are dependent on effective controls in O/S, networks, and databases