ITPEC IP October 2022 Question 63

Avoiding processing of purchasing and payment by the same person — segregation of incompatible duties is a basic internal-control measure.

If the same person can place an order and also pay for it, that person can create a fictitious or inflated purchase and pay it without anyone else noticing. Splitting the steps between different people means each transaction is checked by someone else, so errors and fraud are more likely to be detected. Every other option avoids something that supports control.

Answer (c)

Why not others:

• •(a) — a job description stating scope of work and roles clarifies responsibility; avoiding it weakens control
• •(b) — a handover document keeps work consistent and traceable when staff change; avoiding it weakens control
• •(d) — separating development staff from operation staff is itself a segregation-of-duties control; avoiding the separation removes it

Key rule: Internal control separates incompatible duties (authorize, execute, record, pay) and makes responsibilities explicit, so no single person can both commit and conceal an improper act.

System Audit · AI-written, may contain errors