Article 12 of the Saudi Financial Control Law

This article regulates digital (technical) control, which, under Article 1, is a control method in which the Ministry monitors the government resource systems that have a financial impact. Government resource systems are the electronic financial and administrative systems that serve government entities and the individuals and private sector bodies that deal with them.

How is it applied? Through three means:

1. Monitoring the government resource systems.
2. Analyzing the data produced by them.
3. Examining the control measures connected with them. Under Article 1, control measures are the manual and automated measures and procedures applied by the entity and its personnel to reduce risks.

Purpose: to verify their compliance with the laws, regulations and instructions.

Cooperation: the Ministry applies this control in cooperation with the bodies that regulate and operate the government resource systems, in accordance with the provisions of the Law and the Implementing Regulations. The Ministry does not act alone, but together with those who manage these systems technically and organizationally.

This method differs from direct control: in direct control, a financial representative monitors operations inside the entity under Articles 7 and 8, whereas digital control relies on data and electronic systems. Note that the article limits this method to the government entity.

The article does not give the details of how the analysis or examination is carried out, so reference is made to the Implementing Regulations. Article 13 follows, which regulates report-based control. Anyone working in a government entity who needs to understand the digital control requirements that apply to it can consult a lawyer specialized in administrative cases.