Corporate Fraud and Investigation

The topic of fraud — whether it relates to awareness and prevention techniques, fraud auditing, recent frauds in corporate America, or the criminal mind — continue to be on the radar of investors, shareholders, and regulators. Although a recent fraud survey by Kroll Advisory found that the proportion of companies that suffered an incident declined from 75% last year to 61% in the current survey, it is acknowledged that fraud is anything but defeated.  In addition, with ongoing technological advances in IT infrastructure, new and emerging fraud methods are continually being identified.

 

Corporate professionals -are not expected to have the specialty expertise of forensic investigators, but in order to effectively comply with COSO Principle 8, personnel within the organization -should have adequate knowledge of the aspects of fraud and maintain a sceptical mind when it comes to reviewing potential violations. Like internal controls, the economy, and business strategy, fraud continues to evolve and auditors must stay abreast of its root causes, suggested mitigation, and investigation techniques. Whether you are part of a large internal audit group or a small internal audit group, it is important for all audit professionals to understand processes that could involve fraud.