Methods and systems for mapping transaction data to common ontology for compliance monitoring

Abstract

An automated transaction integrity monitoring system operative to monitor electronic transactions of an enterprise and detect exceptions indicating noncompliance with enterprise policies. The system allows establishment, codification, and maintenance of enterprise policies, monitors electronic transactions of the enterprise from various and possibly heterogeneous data sources, detects exceptions to established policies, reports such exceptions to authorized users such as managers and auditors, and / or provides a case management system for tracking such exceptions and their underlying transactions. The invention specifically relates to systems and methods for transforming or mapping information from a data source relating to a transactional entity associated with an enterprise into a form for processing by a transaction analysis engine operative upon data expressed in a predetermined ontology. The ontology expresses data items in a manner common across plural heterogeneous databases. The enterprise policies are expressed in terms of the ontology.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a continuation of copending U.S. patent application entitled “METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR TRANSACTION COMPLIANCE MONITORING” by Peter H. Kennis, Daniel R. Kuokka, Charles A. Coombs, Stayton D. Addison, Andrew T. Otwell, Jeffrey Z. Johnson, Patrick Taylor, and Michael E. Lortz, having application no. 11 / 085,725, filed on Mar. 21, 2005, which claims the benefit of and priority on U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60 / 554,784 entitled “METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR CONTINUOUS MONITORING OF TRANSACTION DATA FLOW” BY Peter H. Kennis, Stayton D. Addison, Charles A. Coombs, Andrew T. Otwell, and Daniel R. Kuokka, filed on Mar. 19, 2004, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.[0002]This application is also related to and incorporates by reference herein the following US patent applications:[0003]1. Application Ser. No. 11 / ______ filed on ______ entitled “METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR EXTRAC...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0030]In another embodiment, the system further comprises program code for pre-computing predetermined information utilized by the transaction analysis engine, so as to improve performance of the transactional analysis engine. The pre-computed predetermined information comprises calculations based on a plurality of stored transactional entities.

[0075]From the foregoing, those skilled in the art will understand and appreciate that, with its transaction integrity monitoring, exception detection, analysis engine, and case management aspects, a system constructed in accordance with aspects of the inventions identifies fraud, misuse, and errors that directly affect the bottom line of an enterprise or the operations of an organization. The disclosed system combines the benefits of a systems auditor, fraud examiner, forensics auditor, and an information security specialist that is on duty “24×7” to monitor the effectiveness of internal controls. With its advanced analysis engine, the disclosed system identifies systems-based fraud, misuse, and errors in veritable real time. Rather than relying on periodic audits that sample transaction data, the disclosed system's transaction integrity monitoring identifies a problem the moment it occurs and prevents a perpetrator from covering his or her tracks. By identifying errors, misuse, and abuse in veritable real time, the disclosed system minimizes financial loss by allowing an organization to quickly and decisively respond. In many cases, use of the system allows an enterprise to close a hole before it can be exploited. Finally, with transaction integrity monitoring, the disclosed system empowers enterprises to “trust but verify” its financial transactions. The system allows an enterprise's management team to establish a “tone at the top” regarding expectations of conduct within the organization.

Problems solved by technology

However, automated business systems are subject to errors, misuse, and fraud, just like manual, unautomated systems.

Furthermore, automated business systems can open the door for business “hacks” resulting in asset misappropriation and significant financial losses.

Both intentional and unintentional problems can jeopardize the integrity of transactions and reporting of an enterprise.

Vulnerabilities in electronic transaction systems can: (1) permit access to target business applications to launch fraudulent schemes, (2) unknowingly introduce system errors that affect asset appropriation, such as create duplicate payments, or (3) allow system control to be overridden or circumvented, which then provides others the opportunity to abuse or misuse the system to commit fraud.

Present day financial controls of modern business enterprises do not do enough to mitigate business risks from fraud and error within the organization.

According to reports from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), fraud and white collar hacks collectively drain 6 percent of a typical business enterprise's annual revenue.

Failure to establish and abide by some government-imposed requirements can result in criminal as well as civil penalties, so many businesses and other organizations are scrambling to establish policies and compliance monitoring systems.

The real-time nature of information, analysis, decision-making, and policy validation creates additional complexities in financial controls and compliance monitoring.

In the process of exploring automated monitoring systems, many enterprises are facing tradeoffs between stringent controls, operational efficiency, and business risk.

While stringent systems controls may stop a small percent of insiders who intend to defraud the enterprise, stringent controls place a heavy burden on the vast majority of insiders who are honest.

However, prior efforts to provide efficient and effective automated transaction monitoring systems have not been entirely successful.

Such limited approaches are watchful of only a small percentage of transactions on a computer system.

Problematic issues in areas outside of the monitored fields can be overlooked though such issues may result in problems in seemingly non-critical transactions, may affect critical transactions with subtlety, and may result in disperse adverse affects that amount in summations to problems deserving attention but that may go undetected.

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