Auditing Human Resources Processes in SAP Systems

Auditing the Human Resources (HR) module in SAP involves ensuring that processes are designed and operated effectively and that there are appropriate controls in place to manage risks, including the risk of fraud. You can find below the key areas that should be audited, along with potential fraud scenarios that can occur in HR business processes:

·       Key Areas for Auditing in the SAP HR Module are :

1. Organizational Structure:

   - Review the organizational hierarchy and reporting lines to ensure they align with company policies and are updated in real time.

   - Check for segregation of duties to prevent conflicts of interest.

2. User Access and Security:

   - Audit user access controls to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive HR data.

   - Verify that appropriate security roles and profiles are assigned to users.

   - Check for regular audits and reviews of access rights.

3. Payroll Processes:

   - Validate the accuracy of payroll data and calculations.

   - Ensure that payroll changes, such as salary adjustments or new employees, are properly authorized.

   - Confirm the segregation of duties in payroll processing to reduce the risk of fraudulent activity.

4. Employee Data Management:

   - Review processes for maintaining employee master data to ensure they are accurate and up to date.

   - Audit procedures for creating, modifying, and terminating employee records to avoid unauthorized changes.

   - Check for sensitive data protection measures to prevent data leakage.

5. Compensation and Benefits:

   - Verify that compensation and benefits are applied in accordance with company policies.

   - Audit approval processes for bonuses, commissions, and other benefits.

6. Time and Attendance:

   - Review timekeeping systems to ensure they accurately record employee work hours.

   - Check for processes to approve and monitor overtime.

7. Recruitment and Onboarding:

   - Ensure that recruitment and onboarding processes are consistent and follow company guidelines.

   - Audit approvals and documentation for new hires.

8. Compliance with Laws and Regulations:

   - Confirm compliance with labor laws, tax regulations, and other legal requirements.

   - Review documentation related to employment, such as contracts and work permits.

9. Employee Separation and Offboarding:

   - Validate that employee separations are properly documented and authorized.

   - Check that access to systems and physical locations is revoked for terminated employees.

·       Potential Fraud Scenarios in HR Business Processes

1. Ghost Employees:

   - Fraudsters might create fictitious employee records to collect unauthorized salaries or benefits.

2. Unauthorized Changes to Payroll Data:

   - Unauthorized changes to salary rates, allowances, or deductions can result in improper payments.

3. False Time Reporting:

   - Employees or managers might falsify time and attendance records to claim unearned overtime or other benefits.

4. Manipulation of Recruitment Processes:

   - Fraudsters may manipulate recruitment to favor certain candidates, leading to kickbacks or favoritism.

5. Misuse of Compensation and Benefits:

   - Unauthorized bonuses, commissions, or benefit claims can result in financial losses.

6. Misappropriation of Employee Data:

   - Sensitive personal information may be stolen or misused for identity theft or other fraudulent activities.

By auditing these areas and being aware of the potential fraud scenarios, companies can ensure they have robust controls to mitigate risks and maintain compliance with relevant laws and regulations.

The Audit Automation Tool for SAP by SAGESSE TECH( SAP AuditX ) application for SAP ECC and SAP S/4HANA offers tools to modernize your internal audit processes and execute continuous auditing and fraud detection in your SAP Systems. As a result, you can provide executives and the board with the insight and guidance they need and detect any anomalies in your business processes in real-time. The tool is totally integrated into SAP GUI and does not need any other 3rd party software to function.

AAT for SAP by SAGESSE TECH is coming with 300+ Use-Cases spanning business processes like Order-To-Cash, Procure-To-Pay, Inventory, Treasury, Human Resources, IT-General Controls in SAP and more. Using our solution, you will have an automated and continuous auditing on your SAP Systems, detect fraud in real-time and decrease costs of an SAP Audit substantially.

SAGESSE TECH, global SAP Security / Oracle Security / ERP Security Tech Company, is providing Automated Audit Tool for SAP, SAP Threat Detection and Monitoring Products, SAP PenTest Framework and an SAP Audit Service which control these kinds of configurations, vulnerabilities and much more in your SAP Systems. Their products and services can help you to integrate your SAP System into your central threat detection solutions and foster your NIS2 Compliance.

You can contact SAGESSE TECH(E-mail : info@sagesseconsultancy.com, sales@sagesseconsultancy.com or kaankars@sagesseconsultancy.com ), if you would like to have more information about our products or to have a Vulnerability Scanning, SAP Audit or SAP PenTest on your SAP Systems.