Investigating the effectiveness of information technology audit controls in financial institutions: (a case study of sixteen rural banks in Ghana)
Loading...
Date
2016-04-04
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Investigating the effectiveness of information technology (IT) Audit controls in
financial institutions was worth researching, regarding the increasing number of
financial institutions resorting to computerization. Thus, these institutions would
primarily depend on IT audit controls that are put in place to manage and guard the
institutions’ overall business setup to achieve the institutions’ business goals or
objectives. The main objectives of the research were to find out the kind of IT Audit
Controls being used, Controls’ weakness, its causes and effects and the
recommendations needed to ensure controls’ effectiveness. Sixteen computerized
financial institutions were sampled and the IT Controls used were studied. In spite of
the successes made by the computerized financial institutions, the sampled financial
institutions helplessly admitted to the dangers posed by other IT security challenges.
These IT security challenges were mainly as a result of internal control weakness which
potentially can bring the institutions down if not checked. Considering the globalization
of the computerized technology it was recommended that the financial institutions in
the country should employ more of these IT Audit controls , especially Internet and E-Commerce Controls, Telecommunication Controls and Database Controls in the day-to-day transactions. Also for optimum effectiveness of these Controls, the
computerized financial institutions should also pay every price to strengthen the
internal controls to safeguard against avoidable IT Audit controls’ breaches and other
potential security challenges that can break down the financial institutions. Further
research must be undertaken to investigate the recent spate of global banking fraud on
credit and debit cards of customers who patronize electronic commerce.
Description
A Thesis submitted to the Computer Science Department, Kwame Nkrumah
University and Science and Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirement
of the degree of Master of Science in Information Technology,