Shared is not the same as safe
The moment a second person writes in the record, three things become possible: they can see the totals, they can change what was written yesterday, and they can see what everyone else entered. A shared notebook or spreadsheet allows all three. Most owners either accept that or keep two records, which is worse.
The four permissions that matter
1. Record, but do not see the total
An assistant needs to add a sale. They do not need to know the day's takings, the week's, or the book's balance. Hiding the running balance removes the incentive to leave an entry out: if you cannot see the total, you cannot see what a missing line would hide.
2. No backdating
An entry dated today, made today, is a record. An entry dated last Tuesday, made today, is a correction at best. Operators should be able to write only in the present. If yesterday needs fixing, the owner fixes it, and the change is logged.
3. Own entries only
Two assistants on alternate shifts do not need to see each other's entries. Each sees their own lines; the owner sees everything. It also stops the quiet comparison of who sold what.
4. A name on every line
Every entry carries who wrote it and when, recorded by the system rather than typed in. When something looks wrong, the record answers who, and the conversation is short.
Roles, not passwords
Do not share one login. Each person signs in as themselves, and access is granted per book: a viewer reads, an operator records, an admin edits. A book a person is not named on should not appear for them at all. Removing someone should take one tap and take effect on their next sync.
Why the app has to enforce it, not the settings screen
A permission that lives only in the app's interface is a suggestion. A modified app, or a replayed request, gets past it. The rules must be checked on the server, so that a write the person is not allowed to make is refused and rolled back regardless of what their phone claims. Ask any app you consider one question: if I edit the app, can I see the total? If the answer is yes, the permission is decoration.
MoneyBook grants access per book with viewer, operator and admin roles, lets you hide the balance, block backdating and hide others' entries, and enforces every rule on our servers. See how team access works.
Try it on your own books
One book, about a minute. Free to record, forever.