The information of a company always has to be protected and an ERP system should not be the exception, that is why it is important to know how is the ERP security and restrictions of a system. At first glance it can be said that it should provide the greatest possible security and confidence that the business information is well protected and safeguarded. Even more so given the level of detail of the information, the scope of control of the system, the delicacy of the processes it handles, and above all the modules or applications where money is involved.
ERP security must-haves
Single server and restricted access
The system information must be concentrated in a single server, with its respective access restriction and only specialized personnel for the use of the equipment. It is also important to have restricted access to the server through the company's network, so that only certain users or personnel from the systems area have access to it.
Limited number of users
Leaving aside the hardware aspect and focusing more on the ERP system aspect, it should only have a certain number of users to manage it. Each user of the system must have a password to access the system.
Another consideration for the security of the system is that it should allow to know which users made which movements, when they did it and from which terminal it was made. Some systems record this information in the system database itself, others use so-called log files in which the aforementioned data is recorded.
Configuration and parameter modules
There are systems that integrate modules of configurations and parameters in order to finish some aspects of the system such as: what should be its behavior, what should be allowed and what not, what default values to take for certain calculations or operations, what formats for printing invoices or tickets to use, how many decimals to handle in sales or numerical calculations, what applications will handle a specific customer and so on.
Data validation
Another important aspect of any system is the validation of data before it is saved or affected in a database. Any system, regardless of the type of business, must perform these validations to avoid storing junk data and to instruct the user to enter the correct data in the critical and necessary fields. This allows not to enter a number where a letter should go or vice versa, not to leave blank spaces in required data, etc.
Correct handling of the company's business rules
A very specific aspect within the security of an ERP system is the correct handling of the company's business rules. Every ERP must have them well validated and they must cover the whole wide range of possibilities and rules, since the correct decision making of the managers or top executives of the organization will depend on this. It is essential to pay special attention not to leave gaps or possible paths that may cause the possibility that a user can commit a fraud or illegal act to the company in the company.
Data protection and back up
Within the security of a system we can also find the point referring to data protection. There are systems that use data encryption as a tool to protect a huge volume of information with the least possible complications and making it possible to recover it at any time.
As an additional precaution, it is recommended that every ERP system has a tool that performs back ups or backups of the system's operational database. The objective is to avoid the possibility of information loss due to electrical installation failure, hard disk or server damage, or any attempt to violate the integrity of both the database and the information of the system itself.
Regarding the restrictions of a software system, all systems always handle restrictions to certain sections. However, in the case of an ERP, these limitations are taken to a higher level.
Restrictions of an ERP system
There will always be a user who has access to the entire system, in this case, it corresponds to the System Administrator. There will be users who only have access to certain applications or modules of the system.
There are systems whose modules or applications are so extensive that they handle different processes. Likewise, it is also possible to define the limit of use for different users, where they only have access to certain processes contained within a module or application, as well as the actions allowed within it. For example: there will be cases where users will only be able to consult information, others where they will be able to insert and modify and others where they will only be able to generate reports.
There are also systems that manage subsidiary companies. In these cases, users can also be configured for a specific company as well as the type of access they will have within the system. It is possible to configure that a user has the capacity to authorize certain movements within the system, that he/she can only see information of the branch to which he/she belongs, or only of the warehouses that he/she manages, etc.
There are configurations where users can only see management summaries, i.e. where the information of different items of the system is concentrated and synthesized.
It is also possible that the users must change their password every certain period, this for security reasons, in order to avoid that another person uses the user name of a colleague.
The combinations of restrictions on a system and their configurations that can be made are very extensive and varied. The degree of security, control and restriction of the users as well as the correct validation of the business rules provided by an ERP are very important aspects to consider when deciding to implement this system. If you are not sure about the security of your ERP implementation, we recommend you to do an ERP security assessment. It is free, simple and quick.
While organizations receive the security and confidence that everything is running smoothly, software vendors benefit from having a high quality, secure and stable product.
ERP security must-haves
Single server and restricted access
The system information must be concentrated in a single server, with its respective access restriction and only specialized personnel for the use of the equipment. It is also important to have restricted access to the server through the company's network, so that only certain users or personnel from the systems area have access to it.
Limited number of users
Leaving aside the hardware aspect and focusing more on the ERP system aspect, it should only have a certain number of users to manage it. Each user of the system must have a password to access the system.
Another consideration for the security of the system is that it should allow to know which users made which movements, when they did it and from which terminal it was made. Some systems record this information in the system database itself, others use so-called log files in which the aforementioned data is recorded.
Configuration and parameter modules
There are systems that integrate modules of configurations and parameters in order to finish some aspects of the system such as: what should be its behavior, what should be allowed and what not, what default values to take for certain calculations or operations, what formats for printing invoices or tickets to use, how many decimals to handle in sales or numerical calculations, what applications will handle a specific customer and so on.
Data validation
Another important aspect of any system is the validation of data before it is saved or affected in a database. Any system, regardless of the type of business, must perform these validations to avoid storing junk data and to instruct the user to enter the correct data in the critical and necessary fields. This allows not to enter a number where a letter should go or vice versa, not to leave blank spaces in required data, etc.
Correct handling of the company's business rules
A very specific aspect within the security of an ERP system is the correct handling of the company's business rules. Every ERP must have them well validated and they must cover the whole wide range of possibilities and rules, since the correct decision making of the managers or top executives of the organization will depend on this. It is essential to pay special attention not to leave gaps or possible paths that may cause the possibility that a user can commit a fraud or illegal act to the company in the company.
Data protection and back up
Within the security of a system we can also find the point referring to data protection. There are systems that use data encryption as a tool to protect a huge volume of information with the least possible complications and making it possible to recover it at any time.
As an additional precaution, it is recommended that every ERP system has a tool that performs back ups or backups of the system's operational database. The objective is to avoid the possibility of information loss due to electrical installation failure, hard disk or server damage, or any attempt to violate the integrity of both the database and the information of the system itself.
Regarding the restrictions of a software system, all systems always handle restrictions to certain sections. However, in the case of an ERP, these limitations are taken to a higher level.
Restrictions of an ERP system
There will always be a user who has access to the entire system, in this case, it corresponds to the System Administrator. There will be users who only have access to certain applications or modules of the system.
There are systems whose modules or applications are so extensive that they handle different processes. Likewise, it is also possible to define the limit of use for different users, where they only have access to certain processes contained within a module or application, as well as the actions allowed within it. For example: there will be cases where users will only be able to consult information, others where they will be able to insert and modify and others where they will only be able to generate reports.
There are also systems that manage subsidiary companies. In these cases, users can also be configured for a specific company as well as the type of access they will have within the system. It is possible to configure that a user has the capacity to authorize certain movements within the system, that he/she can only see information of the branch to which he/she belongs, or only of the warehouses that he/she manages, etc.
There are configurations where users can only see management summaries, i.e. where the information of different items of the system is concentrated and synthesized.
It is also possible that the users must change their password every certain period, this for security reasons, in order to avoid that another person uses the user name of a colleague.
The combinations of restrictions on a system and their configurations that can be made are very extensive and varied. The degree of security, control and restriction of the users as well as the correct validation of the business rules provided by an ERP are very important aspects to consider when deciding to implement this system. If you are not sure about the security of your ERP implementation, we recommend you to do an ERP security assessment. It is free, simple and quick.
While organizations receive the security and confidence that everything is running smoothly, software vendors benefit from having a high quality, secure and stable product.