Subsection 3.1: Audit trail

For security reasons, many companies and organizations require that their computer systems include an audit trail.

The latter can be defined as the process through which each accounting entry is compared with its source, in order to verify its accuracy. A complete audit trail will allow you to track all your activities: from the flow of incoming goods and products to their departure from the company, including the transformation they undergo within the company. A complete audit trail also allows for maintaining a chronological record of data, allowing it to be traced from the moment it is entered into the file until it is deleted.

The accounting system normally covers:

• a ledger,
• a sales logbook,
• a purchase logbook,
• assets
• financial statements (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement and statement of equity)
• management accounting

The logistics system normally includes:

• the processing of sales orders,
• the processing of purchase orders,
• manufacturing,
• the inventory: warehouse, depot,
• the expedition/transport,
• lists of suppliers and customers.

The audit trail must include:

• sales,
• purchases and purchase orders,
• inventory control,
• warehouse (and movements between different warehouses),
• manufacturing,
• sales and sales orders,
• customs declarations and customs documentation,
• expedition,
• transport,
• accounting, for example, invoicing, credit and debit notes, funds transfers, payments.