Audit trail

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Audit trail (pronounced: /ˈɔːdɪt treɪl/) is a term used in medicine, information technology, and accounting to refer to a security-relevant chronological record, set of records, or destination and source of records that provide documentary evidence of the sequence of activities that have affected at any time a specific operation, procedure, or event.

Etymology

The term "audit trail" is derived from the practice of financial audit where a trail of documents is the main tool for conducting an audit. The term was later adopted in information technology to refer to the chronological record of system activities.

Definition

An audit trail is a step-by-step record by which financial, business, or medical information can be traced to its source. Audit trails are used to verify and track many types of transactions including accounting transactions and trades in brokerage accounts.

Purpose

The main purpose of an audit trail is to maintain security and to ensure the integrity of information while also aiding in the prevention and detection of security violations, performance problems, and flaws in applications.

Related Terms

  • Electronic Health Records (EHR): An electronic version of a patient's medical history, that is maintained by the provider over time, and may include all of the key administrative clinical data relevant to that persons care under a particular provider.
  • Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA): United States legislation that provides data privacy and security provisions for safeguarding medical information.
  • Data Integrity: The maintenance of, and the assurance of the accuracy and consistency of data over its entire life-cycle.

See Also

External links

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