Create Models That Support Audit

You can create models that use audit data to uncover risk revealed by changes to data over time.

For example, a model (and a control developed from it) may analyze frequent supplier site changes by counting the number of records for each supplier with more than two updates per month.

To create change-tracking models, you use audit-enabled business objects. The name of each begins with the word "Audit," for example "Audit - Supplier Sites." Each of these is a parallel version of a distinct object existing in the Oracle Cloud audit framework. For example, the Audit - Supplier Sites object for use in transaction models you create is a version of an object called "Supplier Sites" in the Oracle Cloud audit framework.

Both versions of an audit object capture not only current values for a given attribute, but also past values. Both versions also track event types, which include whether a value is newly created, updated from an earlier value, or deleted.

However, there are differences between the two versions:

• The Oracle Cloud audit framework version of an audit object consists of a set of attributes. All of these attributes appear to be available in the version you use to create transaction models, but you need to enable those you want to use. (The procedure for this comes in a moment.) Attributes that aren't enabled don't provide any information.

  Note: If you were to enable attributes you don't need, performance would be impacted negatively. So you want to enable only the attributes you need. You'd do this for each audit model you create or import.

• When you run data synchronization, you update your local version of audit objects with data that has accumulated in the Oracle Cloud audit framework version. So if you haven't synchronized data, there may be a data mismatch between the two versions of an audit object.

• Oracle Cloud audit framework objects may contain older records that are excluded from your local version of these objects. That's because the latter are subject to a cutoff date. It limits the audit-object records that can be synchronized to those added or updated on or after a date you specify. To set that date, navigate to the Setup and Administration work area and select the Advanced Controls Configurations tab. In its Transaction and Audit Performance Configuration panel, enter or modify a cutoff date in the Audit Events Created as Of field.

To clarify further, audit-model analysis depends on audit data existing in the Oracle Cloud audit framework. Once data is captured in audit-framework business objects, you can synchronize those objects with parallel objects in Oracle Advanced Financial Controls. Audit data is then available in the objects for use in model filters that identify anomalies.

In all other respects, you use the same procedures to create audit models as you do to create conventional models.

For example, to create the model that tracks frequent supplier site changes, select the Audit - Supplier Sites business object, then create these filters:

• First, a standard filter selects recent data. It sets the Date attribute greater than or equal to a relative value, one month.

• A second standard filter returns records of all updates in that month. To do so, it sets the Event Type attribute to Update.

• Finally, a function filter identifies supplier sites with excessive changes. Its Grouping Value line specifies the Supplier ID attribute to group the records of updates by supplier. Its When line selects the Count function, the greater-than condition, and the value two, to return records for each supplier with more than two updates.

To enable the audit business objects and attributes you want to use, you must be a user with rights to Oracle Fusion Functional Setup Manager.

1. Open the model and review it to determine which audit objects and attributes it uses, both to define model logic and to define results the model returns. These are local audit business objects and attributes that correspond to Oracle Cloud audit framework objects and attributes.

   Also note the Type value for the audit business object. It's displayed along with the object name in the page you use to select objects for a model.

2. In the Navigator, select My Enterprise > Setup and Maintenance. Search for the Manage Audit Policies task. In the task list, select that task.

3. In the Manage Audit Policies page, locate the row for Oracle Fusion Applications. In its Audit Level field, select Auditing.

4. Click the Configure Business Object Attributes button in that row.

5. In a Configure Business Object Attributes page, use a Product field to select the product whose data you want to audit. Typically, this value correlates to the Type value you noted in step 1 for a business object your model uses.

6. An Objects region presents a hierarchical list of business objects. Select the object your model uses. To do so, you must also select its parent objects.

7. In an Audited Attributes region, click Create (a plus icon). Select the Oracle Cloud audit framework attributes that correlate to the local attributes you noted in step 1. Then click OK.

8. When you complete your selections, click Save and Close.

After completing this procedure, you can verify your configuration by running Audit Reports. You can select among search parameters to decide the type of audit history report you require. To access the Audit Reports work area, select Navigator > Tools > Audit Reports.