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RE: Trust

• To: "'xml-dev@l...'" <xml-dev@l...>
• Subject: RE: Trust
• From: Ralph Hilken <ralph.hilken@a...>
• Date: Thu, 1 Aug 2002 09:49:46 -0400

[Hodder, Ed wrote at Thu 8/1/2002 9:12 AM EDT]

>Leaving aside the fact that XBRL itself has nothing to do with security is
>XML Signature Syntax and Processing, or something like it, far enough along
>at this point to make this kind of assertion? Is it possible today for
>software to discover a resource somewhere out in the wild and verify that
it
>in fact originated from company XYZ?

XBRL, like many other XML technologies, is in the throes of hype.  This
technology is aimed mainly for GAAP reporting, and it _seems_ to be a
mechanism that CPAs are using to standardize their auditing processes.  It
would also give many firms a reason to automate their auditing processes,
and drop the handwritten forms that are still used for many auditing tasks.
IMHO, the thinking goes that if a computer is used to record and report
auditing information, then the financial data cannot be tweaked for
malicious uses (compared to paper).  Of course that is not a true statement.
However, it would now take a programmer with XML skills to tweak the
financial data, instead of an accountant with a pencil.  Far fewer of those
than CPAs (I think).

Keep in mind that in this industry, the word "material" is what counts.  For
businesses with billion dollar cash entries, only million dollar mistakes
matter.  Also, statistics are used to verify integrity of processes and
entries.  Only a few data entry processes in a company are actually audited
every year, and the results extrapolated.  Standardizing on an automated
system increases the likelihood that the data entry processes are
consistent, lending more credence to the extrapolation process.  Says
nothing about where the data came from in the first place.  Note that it did
not have to be XBRL to accomplish this automation, but that is what seems to
have caught the eye of the accounting industry.

Regards,
Ralph

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