Page 9 - Understandinging Forensic Technology Landscape

Common uses for spreadsheets

Almost all forensic practitioners need a working • Worksheets for planning, project management,
knowledge of the common spreadsheet uses, which budgeting and billing
can be summarized in broad categories. • Worksheets that collect, track, or analyze evidence
Spreadsheet-based evidence (such as chain of custody logs)
Forensic accounting practitioners discover, gather and • Creation of exhibits and charts to analyze or
analyze evidence that has been generated or maintained summarize evidence
in spreadsheets. The forensic practitioner should • Financial models, such as but-for models, damage
understand the nature, validity, completeness, quality analyses and interest calculations
and reliability of the evidence; consider the underlying
data; and formulate and manipulate data and metadata • Analysis of financial statements or reports
within spreadsheet files. Some examples include the • Business valuation models (such as discounted cash
following: flows or capitalization of earnings calculations)

• Collection of spreadsheet files within a target’s • Settlement analyses
possession may determine what information was • Fluctuation analysis used to identify significant
known and when. changes in account activity

• Analysis of spreadsheet files might provide insight into
the ways a perpetrator used, manipulated or falsified Analysis of structured data (arrays and databases)
data. Tables and rows of data, arrayed in a grid, are the heart
of spreadsheet software. These analyses often work
• Spreadsheet metadata could demonstrate the time best when data is arrayed in structured form, with each
that certain information was initially created or last column presenting a single field, each row representing a
accessed. unique record, and a single header row of field names.
• Spreadsheet models could be obtained in discovery
to provide evidence of the analyses performed by Preparation of the data (including steps to upload data)
litigants, third parties or other experts. ensures its validity and completeness, transforms
the data for consistency and proper formatting and is
Spreadsheets, models and unstructured analyses essential to the reliability and usefulness of the resulting
Spreadsheet tools are used for a variety of analytical analyses. Some examples include the following:
tasks as part of forensic engagements. Some • Analysis of full data sets
worksheets are simple, one-tab analyses or illustrations.
Others are highly complex financial models drawing • Determination of specific attributes, including totals,
from multiple data sources, including many tabs of data averages and data values
and calculations, and executing scenario or programmed • Pivot tables, filtering and database functions to
analyses through the use of scripts, macros or rapidly assess data
functions. Forensic practitioners create and tailor • Identification of anomalies and outliers
spreadsheets and workbooks to accomplish all kinds of
tasks throughout the lifecycle of an engagement. Some
examples include the following:

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