Recently an audit of ABC Inc., where John is an accountant, revealed that an Accounts Payable executive had committed a fraud of around $350,000 over the last few months. The details of the fraud were revealed and it was discovered that the executive had been able to create fictitious vendors in the system and then was able to create bogus invoices which they were then able to authorize for payment. The clerk then cashed the checks at a local bank. 

In your post, please address the following:

• What control principle was violated that allowed the fraud to take place?
• What internal control recommendations can you make to prevent this from happening in the future?
• Name components of the control environment (COSO)