Has technology helped or hindered accounting? Explain. Provide specific details to support your opinion in your response. Add citation and reference Do the discussion first then response each posted Posted 1 Accounting has grown a lot as a science and as a tool to support and help managers to control, understand and manage their companies in the last years. During the same time, accounting entities like FASB and IASB have issued tons of procedures and new rules to improve accounting. However, this growth and improvements have turned accounting much more complex today than it was 30 years ago. The level of complexity reached a so high level that I would say that it is impossible to do accounting without a high-tech accounting software. I cannot imagine an industry controlling its inventory without technology or an intensive capital company like the oil refinery that I work for can control and record all their leases, properties, plants, and its depreciation and amortization without technology. Posted 2 Technology has changed business as a whole and accounting has been forced to follow suite or become obsolete. Companies can no longer rely on television or phonebook ads, but instead must heavily invest in social media and marketing teams to stay relevant. Accounting is no different and while the technology may be cumbersome, it is necessary to provide the amount of information needed in the time constraints given for large corporations. “Computerized accounting systems streamline the accounting process while efficiently storing financial information for a company” (Frost, n.d.). This security and reassurance add a protective layer to all accounting systems as data can be stored electronically for multiple years and is easily accessible. Technology has allowed businesses and investors to move rapidly. Accountants can move through more data quickly and at a higher rate of accuracy. “Technology has had a positive effect in accounting applications because calculations done by a computer program experience very few errors” (Shaker, n.d.). Programs and software provide more reliability and flexibility which ultimately provide customers and investors a better return. Potentially the best advancement is the ability to digitally secure information rather than storing paper copies. There are now multiple logins, passwords, authenticators, and other avenues that are created to monitor access and keep information secure. There are obvious downfalls to moving towards more automation and electronic data, like security risks, limitations, and an ever-changing technological environment. While digital or cloud storage are improvements on paper files, there are still dedicated careers to online hacking. Automation also has its limitations and can lead to an unpersonal response to clients and unknown errors (Frost, n.d.). Lastly, technology will continue to evolve and companies will be left to decide when it is necessary to keep up and when they can skip an upgrade. It is important to have a backup to technology in case of serious problems, but otherwise it is an improvement and not an option we have to avoid. Posted 3 Hello Everyone, There are many risks involved with integrating technology into the accounting world however, there are also benefits to technology. When accounting information was only received and entered manually, it was a longer and more drawn-out process because there had to be a segregation of duties to mitigate the risk of fraud. Whereas, in a computerized system, there are programs in place to prevent the fraud therefore, less employees are needed to perform the same job functions and the risk of fraud is reduced. Another benefit of computerized accounting systems is the ease associated with tracing the electronic audit trail. In a manual system there is a physical paper trail that must be traced for an audit whereas, in an electronic system, all of the information can be found quickly. The algorithms used in computerized systems are also more reliable than the mistakes that can be made by humans. There are usually audit procedures built into the application itself that allow for continuous monitoring of the transactions (Wiley, 2022). The risks that are involved with technology in the accounting world include the possibility of hackers gaining access to the system, the potential for damage being increased in a computerized system because once the system is breached, the hacker can access an abundance of information quickly which wouldn't be possible in a manual system, and there is also a possibility that the program is not designed properly and makes it easier for fraud to take place (Wiley, 2022). With all of this information I feel that technology overall, has helped accounting. There will be risks involved in accounting regardless because it is impossible to mitigate every accounting risk however, with changing technology, it is getting easier to prevent and detect fraud than ever before.