Security in XML-based financial reporting services on the Internet

This paper addresses security in financial reporting services. First, it describes Web services and conceptualizes financial reporting services such as XBRL and XARL as Web Services. Next, it discusses security threats and limitations of current security technologies. Then, it identifies security requirements that should be considered to ensure reliable, trustworthy XBRL and XARL services. Finally, the paper explains several proposed security standards and suggests Web Services Security Architecture as a suitable security mechanism for financial reporting services.