Definition of audit trail
: a record of a sequence of events (such as actions performed by a computer) from which a history may be reconstructed
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Recent Examples of audit trail from the Web
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The development of the audit trail has often been caught in red tape and industry fights over who will pay for it.
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The audit trail was also designed to ingest details about stockbrokers’ customers, including their names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers.
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But four other states besides Delaware — Louisiana, Georgia, New Jersey and South Carolina — use paperless systems that leave no audit trail, as do large swaths of Pennsylvania and some other states.
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But four other states besides Delaware — Louisiana, Georgia, New Jersey and South Carolina — use paperless systems that leave no audit trail, as do large swaths of Pennsylvania and some other states.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'audit trail.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of audit trail
1954
Financial Definition of AUDIT TRAIL
audit trail
What It Is
An audit trail refers to the complete record of events that occurred in the execution of a transaction.
How It Works
When a transaction is executed (e.g. a business purchase), each documented step taken makes up the audit trail. Depending on the transaction, the audit trail can be highly complex or very simple.
For instance, the audit trail for the purchase of a carton of milk would consist only of the receipt for the transaction. This receipt details the exchange of cash for the item purchased (milk), the date, and the institution where it occurred (the store).
Why It Matters
The records comprised in an audit trail can be reviewed with diligence in the event that accounting figures fail to reconcile. Recreating a transaction step-by-step will reveal where a breakdown in the process occurred (if any).
Source: Investing Answers
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