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A3-M9-AUDIT DATA ANALYTICS

Scatter plots allow for the auditor to graphically show the relationship among variables. Scatter plots allow for regression lines to be added to show the direction and strength of correlation.

ADAs may require additional documentation concerning the rationale of the analytic applied in addition to details concerning the data and technique employed.

The review and evaluation of spreadsheet controls are considered a reliability procedure when performed on data utilized in an ADA.

Descriptive analytics describe what happened within the data.

Predictive analytics provide expected or predicted outcomes based on historical data.

Comma-separated value (CSV) files are efficient ways to move data from clients’ systems to the auditor’s software. These files create separate fields for text that is separated by commas.

A primary key serves as a unique identifier to allow a user to identify a specific record in a database. A primary key is required so that a table is always uniquely identifiable.

Relational databases allow data to be stored in different tables, with the tables linked through relationships using key fields. Relationships result from a link between a primary key (a unique identifier for a specific row within a table and made up of one or more attributes) in one table and a foreign key in another table. A foreign key is an attribute in one table that is also a primary key in another table.

Social media posts are unstructured data b/c it’s not organized and has a variety of data formats and types, including text, numbers, images, audio, and video.

Line charts are the best way to demonstrate trends b/c they appropriately address the forward-moving concept of time.

ADA TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGY

  • Data extracts and Preparation

  • Data Modeling

  • Data Visualization

ADA TECHNIQUES

  • Descriptive: what happened or what is happening within the data

  • Diagnostic: understand why something happened with the data

  • Predictive: use historical data to make predictions, estimates, and assertions about future events

  • Prescriptive: most advanced and complex type of analytic; shift focus from what will happen to how to make something happen; prescribes courses of actions to help optimize decisions to reach desired outcomes.

DATA FILE FORMATS

  • tab-separated text (txt) file

  • comma-separated value (CSV) file

  • Microsoft Excel (xlsx) spreadsheet

  • database (db) or access database (accdb) file

  • extensible markup language (xml) file

  • hypercube (hyper) file

  • compressed (zip) file

DATA STORAGE

  • data lake

  • data warehouse

  • data mart

  • data cubes

  • databases

  • tables

  • spreadsheets

STRUCTURED DATA

  • tables

  • attributes

  • records

  • fields

  • database keys

    • primary

    • foreign

    • composite

Unstructured data is all data that is not structured