Thus, throughout the audit processes, the auditor can be assured that the data are the same (i.e., they have integrity) by checking totals of the test data against the control totals obtained from the live system.
This process is particularly helpful to auditors who use generalized audit software, such as ACL.
Batch controls can serve as one means of obtaining “custody of evidence” in a fraud audit.
Securing the data, obtaining batch controls, and then running tests that can be used as forensic evidence can be an effective process for fraud audits.
ACL commands such as PROFILE, TOTAL, and COUNT will provide the kind of information necessary to adequately
develop a set of batch controls.
See Figure 9.7 for a screen shot of ACL using the AR table, and Figure 9.8 to see the results in the log file of running PROFILE, TOTAL, and COUNT on AR.