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ABA
American Bar Association
Activity Level
One of two levels at which internal controls can operate. The control is applied at the point of an activity. An example is a bank reconciliation to control cash movements.
AICPA
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Application Access
Access to an application via direct connection, Web services or a terminal.
Application Controls
A type of control activity. Typically involve controls over processing of individual applications, ensure transactions are valid, properly authorized, completely and accurately processed.
Automated User Enrollment
Process to move user identity information over a network from a data source to a directory where it is needed.
BaFin
Germany: financial regulator
By-name Authorization
From an individual username, connecting authorized access to a data target.
CISSP
Certified Information Systems Security Professional
CODIS
Combined DNA Index System
Control Activities
One of five components of internal control according to the COSO Internal Control Framework. Also known as Control procedures.
Control policies and procedures to ensure actions identified as necessary for risk assessment are carried out. They have to be both established and executed for their effectiveness to be established. Control activities are made up of two elements, policies and procedures.
Control Environment
One of five components of internal control according to the COSO Internal Control Framework
Senior management have to set the tone at the top, that positively influences the control consciousness of entity personnel. Discipline and structure are generated by the control environment and is the central building block for the other components of internal control.
COSO
Committee Of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission
COSO Framework
Most widely used framework to assess the effectiveness of internal control.
CPAB
Canada: Canadian Public Accounting Board
CPCAF
The Center for Public Company Audit Firms
CPPI
Constant Proportion Portfolio Insurance
CPS
Crown Prosecution Service
Data Field Access
Access to one or more selected fields in a database.
Data Governance
The process by which companies govern appropriate access to and the use and transmission of their critical data by measuring operational risk and controlling security exposures.
Data Integrity
Accuracy and reliability of published and non-published information maintenance.
Database Access
Access to one or more data entries in a database.
Directory-enabled access controls
Controls over access to digital resources that is controlled by entries in a service directory
Disclaimed Opinion
Report by an auditor that it is unable to express an opinion regarding a company's internal control over financial reporting.
An example is from Deloitte And Touche at Cray "Because of the limitation on the scope of our audit described in the second paragraph of this report, the scope of our work was not sufficient to enable us to express, and we do not express an opinion o management's assessment referred to above."
Distributed Enrollment
Process of enrollment conducted by persons at one or more remote locations acting as agents for enrolling end users.
DNS
Domain Name System
Donaldson, William
Former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission
DTI
Department of Trade and Industry
Dynamo
A public Constant Proportion Portfolio Insurance product BNP
ECM
Enterprise Content Management
Entity Level
One of two levels at which internal controls can operate. Controls are implemented at the entity level if they have a pervasive effect on the control environment. An example is the recruitment and training policies of the company.
FASAC
Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council
FASB
Financial Accounting Standards Board
FFS
South Korea: Financial Supervisory Service
File Access
Access to the contents of a digital file.
Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council
Overseer of the Financial Accounting Standards Board.
Financial Reporting
Defined by the COSO Framework as:-
The preparation of reliable published financial statements, including interim and condensed financial statements and selected financial data derived from such statements, such as earnings releases, reported publicly.
Financial Supervisory Commission
Taiwan: financial regulator
Finite Access Control
Control of end-user access for one username to specific resources.
Firm Infrastructure
Support activity in the value chain analysis. General management, planning, finance, accounting, legal, government affairs and quality management are all activities.
GAO
Government Accountability Office
Gen2
RFID standard setting interoperability and bandwidth technologies
Group-membership Access
Assignment to a group sharing similar access rights.
IISP
Institute of Information Security Professionals
Inbound Logistics
Element in primary activities dealing with receiving, storing and disseminating inputs to the product. Materials handling, warehousing, inventory control and supplier returns. First stage in the value chain analysis.
Information and Communication
One of five components of internal control according to the COSO Internal Control Framework
Systems surrounding the control activities. The accounting system counts as information and communication. Information needed to manage, control and conduct operations are captured by the entity.
Information Processing
In the context of Control Activities and Sec 404, performed to check accuracy, completeness and authorization of transactions. Broadly break down into two groups:- Application controls and general controls.
Information Systems Audit and Control Association
Publisher with Information Technology Governance Institute of the IT Control Objectives for Sarbanes-Oxley.
Information Technology Governance Institute
Publisher with Information Systems Audit and Control Association of the IT Control Objectives for Sarbanes-Oxley.
Integrity and Ethics
Reside under the Control Environment. The senior management need to set the tone for the company. Whilst they might be considered "soft" and "intangible" concepts, they affect the design, administration and monitoring of other internal controls. According to COSO, the actions of management is more important than having them written down.
Negative examples of integrity and ethics are the infamous Enron and WorldCom scandals.
A positive example is BP which sets a high bar for ethical behaviour by employees. To back this policy up they make mention of it and its effectiveness in financial reports.
Internal Control - Integrated Framework
Formal name of the COSO Framework
Internal Control Deficiency
Occurs when the design or operation of a control does not allow management or employees, in the normal course of performing their assigned functions, to prevent or detect misstatements on a timely basis.
ISACA
Information Systems Audit and Control Association
ISDA
International Swaps and Derivatives Association
ITA
Information Technology Architecure
ITGI
Information Technology Governance Institute
Monitoring
One of five components of internal control according to the COSO Internal Control Framework
The means through which the control process is monitored and improved via modification.
NBA
Network Behavior Analysis
Network Access
Access to network connected resources.
NIST
National Institute of Standards and Technology
NNSP
National Nuclear Security Administration
Nonrepudiation
Reducing an end-users ability to deny he was the one who authorized an action or sent a message.
NSA
National Security Agency
Objectives
The COSO Framework defines three broad categories:- compliance with laws and regulations, financial reporting and operations. In relation to Sarbanes-Oxley the important one is financial reporting.
Password Reset
Replacing an existing password with a new one. The old password is cancelled. Task performed by the end user, help desk or an administrator
Password Synchronisation
Moving passwords and sometimes usernames from one repository to another using automated processes.
Physical Controls
A type of control activity. They involve the physical security of assets. They ensure adequate safeguards over access to assets and records.
Privacy Protection
Creating and maintaining digital and/or physical barriers around an individual's personal information to prevent unauthorized access.
Procedure
1) Actions of people to implement the stated policies.
Procurement
Support activity in value chain analysis. Mainly the purchase of inputs throughout the value chain. Encompasses elements throughout the primary and support activities.
Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
Organization set up under Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002 to regulate auditing of public companies and auditors.
Reduced sign-on
Using the same username/password combination to access every resource over multiple logon events.
RFID
Radio Frequency Identification
Risk Assessment
One of five components of internal control according to the COSO Internal Control Framework
Risks faced by the company have to be recognized. Objectives have to be set, integrated into the value-chain. To achieve the objectives, risks have to be identified, analyzed and develop methods to manage them.
Role Definition
Access authorization based on the job or work performed. Typically applied to a single person or a group sharing the same work.
Role-based access control
Controlling access bas only on the role definitios
SCSE
Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics
SEC
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Section 104
Section of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requiring the PCAOB to inspect registered public accounting firms on a regular basis
Section 302
Section of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requiring a certification to accompany each quarterly and annual report filed with the SEC.
Section 404
Section of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 mandating CEOs and CFOs of public companies to evaluate and report on the effectiveness of an entity's internal control over financial reporting.
Segregation of Duties
A type of control activity. Different people are assigned responsibilities for authorizing transactions, recording transactions and maintaining custody of assets. The purpose is to inhibit the perpetration and concealment errors or irregularities, by reducing the opportunity to do so in the course of people's everyday work.
Self-Enrollment
End-user is permitted to enter his own identity information using an online process
Service
Business process activities dealing with providing service to enhance or maintain the value of the product, once obtained by the buyer. Installation, repair and supplying parts are all covered. Considered to be a primary activity in the value chain analysis. Lies last after market and sales.
Service Directories
Directories used to provide identity information and authorization data to a gatekeeper device or application.
Significant Deficiency
An internal control deficiency that adversely affects the entity's ability to initiate, record, process, or report external financial data reliably in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). A significant deficiency could be a single deficiency or a combination of deficiencies, that results in more than a remote likelihood that a misstatement of the annual or interim financial statements that is more than inconsequential in amount will not be prevented or detected.
SMTP
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
SOX
Shorthand for Sarbanes-Oxley.
Web Access Control
Internal controls limiting Web server and Web application access.
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