Fraud Auditing, Detection, and Prevention Blog

Using Fraud Auditing to Detect Shell Company Fraud Schemes

Jul 14, 2023 8:20:42 AM / by Leonard W. Vona posted in Fraud Auditing, Concealment Strategies, ...

Using Fraud Auditing to Detect Shell Company Fraud Schemes

The last two blogs were an esoteric discussion on fraud auditing using either a principal-based approach or a rule-based approach. With this blog, we'll launch into the practical use of fraud auditing. By way of example, we will look at how to detect shell company fraud schemes perpetrated against your company. Remember, our goal is to make audit the number one reason for fraud detection.

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Examining the Words the Audit Profession Uses to Describe Responsibilities

Apr 19, 2023 5:17:13 PM / by Leonard W. Vona posted in Fraud Data Analytics, Fraud Auditing, ...

This is the second of three blogs looking at the state of the auditing profession. In the first blog, we looked at what has changed as companies have grown and gone global. In this article, we’re considering the use of words and the significance of precision.

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A Different Way to Think About Fraud Risk Management

May 23, 2022 8:24:28 AM / by Leonard W. Vona posted in Fraud Auditing, Concealment Strategies, ...

On which day of the year are online dates most vulnerable to fraud schemes?

Valentine’s day -- the heart wants what the heart wants! Does this make us vulnerable?

In the USA alone, romance swindles cost how many millions of dollars in one year?

Romance frauds resulted in losses of over $300 million in the US in 2021.

How does the sophistication of fraud concealment, apply to online dating fraud?

The romance scammer uses techniques to make you believe that their love for you is real. Fraudsters, also use techniques to make fraudulent transactions look real!

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Concealment Strategies & Red Flags: Better Detecting Fraud

Apr 24, 2018 1:00:00 PM / by Leonard W. Vona posted in Concealment Strategies, Red Flags, ...

As per the commonly understood fraud triangle there, are three typical components why someone would commit a fraud scheme: motive, opportunity, and rationalization. While motive and rationalization are factors that could be limited to individual behavior and psychology, opportunity is something your internal controls can and should account for.

Within rationalization, anyone involved in a fraud scheme needs to have the ability and opportunity to conceal and commit fraud. There is a direct relationship between having the opportunity to commit fraud and having the ability to conceal the fraud and so auditors need to consider both opportunity and the ability to conceal in the design of an audit plan.

Knowing which common concealment strategies might have been deployed by any given fraud scheme is an essential part of any approach to preventing and detecting fraud. Let’s examine concealment in more detail.

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