Identify the internal control weakness in the following situations. State how the person can hurt the company.

a. Katie Parker is the purchasing agent for Salem Sports Equipment. Parker prepares purchase orders based on requests from division managers of the company. Parker faxes the purchase order to suppliers, who then ship the goods to Salem. She receives each incoming shipment and checks it for agreement with the purchase order and the related invoice. She then routes the goods to the respective division managers and sends the receiving report and the invoice to the accounting department for payment.

b. Melissa Makers works as a security guard at RAPID parking in Kansas City. Makers has a master key to the cash box where customers pay for parking. Each night Makers prepares the cash report that shows (a) the number of cars that parked on the lot and (b) the day’s cash receipts. Julie Gibbons, the RAPID treasurer, checks Makers’ figures by multiplying the number of cars by the parking fee per car. Gibbons then deposits the cash in the bank.