The Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting: Ransomware Risks

This report explores the profound impact of Business Intelligence (BI) on accounting practices. It begins by defining BI and its role in streamlining accounting functions, including data collection, analysis, and reporting. The report highlights how BI tools enhance decision-making, improve accuracy, and facilitate the efficient management of financial data, reducing the need for manual processes and enabling strategic roles for accountants. Furthermore, the report addresses the risks associated with ransomware attacks, particularly in the context of healthcare organizations. It identifies key vulnerabilities such as organizational data, market reputation, patient health, and intellectual property. The report outlines potential impacts, including patient harm, legal implications, and financial loss, while also suggesting controls like firewalls, password protection, cybersecurity training, and updated software to mitigate these risks. The report concludes by emphasizing the evolving role of accountants, who are transitioning from traditional accounting tasks to strategic decision-makers empowered by BI tools.

Running Head: Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AND
RANSOMWARE ATTACK

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 1
Part A
To conduct every business several functions are required to be performed by the business
organisation. Accounting is one among those key functions which needs to be performed by
almost every business enterprise to maintain the adequate records of important financial data
of the company. The function of accounting not only involves preparation of books of
accounts but it involves various activities such as collection of data from various resources,
recording of the collected data, summarising the data into relevant information, classification
of such information so as to incorporate them in the financial statements of the company
analysing the processed information and ultimately interpreting, analysing and comparing the
financial information regarding the business of the company. Few years back, all these
functions were supposed to be performed by the accountants of the company. As accounting
functions entails a wide gamut of activities, it was quite difficult for the accountants to carry
out such functions individually with complete accuracy and in the limited time. But, with the
advancement of technologies the overall accounting function is made simple and manageable.
The development of concept of business intelligence has positively contributed to the
simplification of business function of various enterprises.
Business intelligence is a process which is completely technology driven and covers various
tools and applications that supports various business functions. It supports almost every
business function with the innovative tools and techniques (Ranjan, 2009). Most of the
business organisations use business intelligence as an analytical tool to analyse the complex
business information so as to make sound business decisions. BI helps the business managers
in collecting the necessary data from various internal and external sources to facilitate the
core business functioning. It also promotes the accuracy of function by providing the accurate
information to the users on the correct time so that appropriate courses of actions can be

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 2
made (Hassani, 2015). The implementation of BI tools improves the operational capacity of
the business operation by promoting improved decision making.
Particularly in the accounting area, business intelligence has a major role to play. It is used to
analyse the financial information of the company thereby providing the key financial results
to the required parties. Business intelligence provides the analysed data in the easily
accessible formats to the users so that proper actions can be taken with the use of relevant
financial information of the business of the business.
The accounting functions previously used to utilise huge amount of human efforts and time to
collect and process the data related to the important business transactions and events. But
now the implementation of business intelligence tools has simplified and improved the
accounting function by providing completely accurate information on time to time basis. The
large databases are used to maintain large amount of relevant financial data regarding the
important elements of the company such as the record of sock maintained by the company
etc. which can help its management team in achieving the financial goals and objectives.
Before the introduction of BI technique, the huge amount of financial data was stored on the
physical mode which was difficult to maintain and retain in long term. The databases under
the business intelligence techniques has resolved the storage of ample of business data.
Moreover, business intelligence applications helps in performing various management
accountant’s functions such as preparation of necessary reports to be delivered to the
managers to enable them to take required actions (CIMA, 2008). It also helps the
management of the enterprises by prompt provision of information as and when the actions
upon them are required to be performed without entertaining any delay whereas in manual
accounting the financial information used to be communicated to the intended users and
managers by the accountants only on annual basis. Business intelligence tools helps the

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 3
business goals and objectives by facilitating various functions such as financial budgeting and
financial planning by completely processing the accounting data collected from various
sources. It also helps the business managers in identifying the financial trends that are
generally followed by the businesses so as to enable the managers in making appropriate
accounting estimates and assumption. BI has also enabled the business enterprises to respond
appropriately and timely to the changes in the financial situation of the company. The key
performance indicators that are used by business intelligence makes business managers more
aware and attentive towards their financial goals and performance so that it can be improved
on a constant basis.
The typical implementation of business intelligence concept to the business has threatened
the management accountants in respect of their functions. With the development of BI
technologies the management accountants had started assuming that their role an importance
in the organisation functioning is getting reduced gradually. But it is actually not so. Rather
the scope of role of accountants is getting enlarged with the implementation of business
intelligence tools and applications in the business organisations (Richards, Yeoh, Chong &
Popovic, 2014). Yes it is a correct fact that the development of business intelligence has
facilitated businesses with various analytical and reporting and performance management
tools which has reduced the role of management accountants in these contexts but at the same
time it is also correct that the implementation of business intelligence spared the management
accountants capacity by releasing them from performing the analytical and reporting
functions (Marjanen, Tommi, 2017). The released capacity of management accountants of the
business organisations can be now be used in accepting the decision supporting roles. These
accountants are therefore now required perform the strategic functions rather than being the
mere spectators (Jordan, 2014).

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 4
From the above study it can be established that the implementation of business intelligence
processes supports the overall functioning of the business organisation. Particularly in the
accounting areas, business intelligence tools have proved to be very successful for the
organisational functioning by providing necessary information to the managers to make
appropriate decision making. It also offers the companies competitive advantages over the
firms that are still not using the business intelligence (Guarda, Santos, Pinto, Augusto, Silva,
2013). Moreover, the implementation of business intelligence applications in performing the
accounting function has not ended the roles of the accountants rather their roles are changed
from being the mere accountants to the strategic decision makers. They are now expected to
adopt enhanced role by managing the strategic functions of the same company in which they
were performing the mere accounting functions.

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 5
Part B:
Ransomware attack, 2017
Ransomware attacks are the cyber security disasters that are carried by the malwares which
are disguised as the authentic word files or PDF’s that the corporate users are tricked to
download. These files are sent in the through the email attachments. When these files are
downloaded the malware encrypts the organisational data and demands ransom to release
that. Recently, in year 2017, a similar ransomware attack occurred which had majorly
affected four countries: Taiwan, Ukraine, Russia and India. The important data maintained by
the organisations of these countries was caught by the malware. As a consequence of this, the
caught data was encrypted and the access to it was blocked for these organisations. The
malware demanded heavy ransoms in return to the decryption of that data. The ransom was
supposed to be paid in the Bitcoin currency (Perlroth, Scott & Frenkel, 2017).
The key risk areas where the medical institutions are exposed to the Ransomware attack:
 Organisational data: The medical organisation maintains a large record of its
patients in the electronic mode which is of utmost importance for it as such records
contains the significant information about the patients and the their health care service
providers. Such information needs to be accessed for various administrative and
operational purposes. However, because of online storage, this data is more exposed
to the cyber-attacks (Zetter, 2016).
 Market reputation: The loss of valuable data or the lives of patients as a result of
ransomware deeply affects the market standing of the company and the medical
practitioners working in the victim organisation.

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 6
 Health and safety of the patients: One of the major area which could be exposed to
the adverse impact of ransomware attack is the safety and well-being of patients of the
healthcare facilities providers. The inactivation of medical devices due to such attacks
can affect the health of the patients (Zetter, 2016).
 Intellectual properties: The organisation holds various results of the researches made
by its medical practitioners, the drug formulas and the details of experiments in
relation to the surgery procedures. Such information is generally kept confidential so
that any external interested parties is prevented to access it. However, the ransomware
attacks could expose such data to the outside world.
The potential impacts of these risks can vary depending upon the severity of the attack. In
general following impacts could be experienced as a result of ransomware attack:
 Harm to the patient’s health: The disruption of the medical facilities provided to the
patients of the hospital because of occurrence of the cyber-attacks can cause heavy
injuries to their health.
 Legal implications: The leakage of public sensitive information of the patients of the
hospitals may call for legal costs to be paid by the hospital.
 Sabotage: The impact of ransomware attack could also reach outside the boundaries
of local country. The foreign pharmaceutical competitors of the victimised hospital
could also be made available with its valuable data which could be misused by them.
 Loss of competitive advantage or creditability: The confidential data maintained by
the hospital could be revealed out to its competitors as a result of the ransomware
attack. The exposure of confidential information could enable the interested third
parties to take undue advantage of hospital’s valuable data and the exposure of

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 7
sensitive information about the patients of the company may also cause loss of trust
among them (Gordon, Fairhall & Landman, 2017).
 Financial loss: The ransomware attacks may destroy the sensitive and important
financial information of the hospitals which could make the organisation suffer from
huge financial losses.
Following controls can be implemented to protect the hospitals from the occurrence of
ransomware attacks.
 Use of firewall systems: The firewalls can protect the hospitals from the cyber-
attacks by preventing the unauthorised users to access the authorised data of the
organisation.
 Password protected systems and devices: All the systems and devices operated by
the hospital staff must be password protected so that the illegitimate parities cannot
access such systems (Kruse, Frederick, Jacobson & Monticone, 2017).
 Cyber-security training: The employees of the hospitals must have adequate
knowledge of cyber security measures so they can prevent the occurrence of such
cyber-attacks. Therefore, they must be provided required training in this context
(Perakslis, 2014).
 Installation of antivirus programs: The antivirus programs can safeguard the
operating systems of the hospitals by constantly scanning for the viruses in the system
applications and software (Martin, Martin, Hankin, Darzi, Kinross, 2017).
 Deployment of updated software: The organisational functions such as accounting,
banking functions etc. of the hospital are often supported by various software. The
management must ensure that only updated software with complete security features
are used for such business functions.

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 8

Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 9
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Impact of Business Intelligence on Accounting 10
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