How Information Flows and Is Used in an Organization

How Information Flows and is Used in an Organization

Rafael Astolpho

Information Systems Fundamentals/CIS/207

September 29th, 2014

University of Phoenix

How Information Flows and is Used in an Organization

Going through the three individual courses this week in regards to Data Storage, Security, Recovery and Disposal has given me a new set of eyes on how information flows and is used among an organization’s computer infrastructure. What I found amazing about these processes is just how far we have come in these last few years when it comes to the technology of Digital Data. I will go over the individual topics that show the benefits, but also the drawbacks of such technology the way it is used at my work place, which is one of the largest Financial Institutions in the United States.

Data Storage

When we look back years ago when computers did not exist, it always puzzles me how is it that banks stored our information. I can only imagine the vast amounts of bank records in immense rooms that if you needed to research a certain transaction you did a few years back, even though I’m sure paperwork was kept in a certain order, it would be a hassle to get to it. Once computers came into play in the recent years and no longer you had to go to your local branch to do all your business, no longer you needed to sign a Signature Card, things have simplified immensely. You can go into any bank location and if you needed a history of your recent transactions, statements from a few months or even years’ back, it is stored in the bank’s centralized mainframe where all data is stored.

Data Security

When we speak about Data Security today, we seem to forget how things were done back before computers came into play. One example I like to use is Frank William Abagnale Jr., who forged a vast amount of checks. ("Frank Abagnale - Wikipedia, The Free...