Control testing

Each control test belongs to an assessment and a control. The tester records when the test occurred, how many items were sampled, how many exceptions were found, and the result. An evidence reference connects the conclusion to material a reviewer can inspect. This is the place to separate a failed control from a test that remains pending or ends inconclusive.

Suppose a tester samples access approvals for a campus unit. The sampled total and exception total should reconcile; exceptions cannot exceed the sample. A pass needs an evidence reference. A failed or inconclusive result gives the Assessment Owner a reason to examine whether a finding should be raised. The test record stays connected to its control and assessment, so the team can trace the issue to the exact check that was performed.

• Planned line. A numbered test line keeps the control test within its assessment revision.
• Result. Sample size, exception count and result state show what the tester observed.
• Evidence. A reference or assessment attachment gives the reviewer a path to inspect the basis of the result.

Agree the sampling convention for the first assessment and who enters results. Define what an evidence reference should point to and how attachments are titled. Decide when an inconclusive test needs another sample and when it should become a finding. An exception count of zero is meaningful only alongside a sample size and evidence the reviewer can inspect.

Keep internal and shared attachment visibility aligned with the institution’s access rules. A shared attachment should be selected deliberately, particularly when the evidence includes information from a campus unit. The assessment owner should review unresolved test lines before presenting a completed test set to an Independent Reviewer.

Pick a planned control test and record its sample, exceptions, result and evidence reference. Have the Control Owner explain the underlying check. Have the Assessment Owner open the linked assessment and locate that result. Then ask the Independent Reviewer to identify the supporting attachment and decide whether the result warrants a finding. A passing result without a usable evidence reference is not ready for review. Compare the exception total with the sample before saving the result, then inspect the parent assessment to see whether testing can advance to review.

• Failed Control Tests — Failed test results with their samples, exception totals and evidence references.
• Assessments in Review — Engagements waiting for an independent decision after testing.

Follow testing and findings to record outcomes and remediation and retest when a finding needs action.