Fraud prevention
Fraud prevention is something the government and management should be prepared for. No entity is safe from fraud. What is important to understand is knowing the basics of fraud in order to better prepare a preventative plan.
Knowing the motive, rationalization, and opportunity helps understand what drives fraud to occur. Motive and rationalization are factors that are beyond the control of management. These are factors usually from outside influences, personal lives, and individual personalities (Bakertilly., 2013).
The opportunity, however, is the one factor that management can control, so the focus needs to be primarily on eliminating or reducing the opportunities to commit fraud. According to the auditing standards, the primary responsibility for the prevention and detection of fraud rests with the governing body and management.
Management responsibilities include creating an environment where fraud is not tolerated, identifying risks of fraud, and taking appropriate actions to ensure that controls are in place to prevent and detect fraud.
The governing body is also responsible for ensuring that management is carrying out the task assigned to them in relation to fraud risk and prevention as well as understanding the environment to determine if management can override or influence the controls in place (Bakertilly., 2013).
Fraud prevention does require a system of policies and procedures which are put into place to minimize the likelihood of fraud occurring while maximizing the possibility of detecting any fraudulent activity that might occur.
The possibility of being caught for an act of fraud can serve as a deterrent to potential fraudsters. Most experts believe that it is much easier to prevent fraud than to detect it (Associates of Certified Fraud Examiners., 2022).
I do think a lot goes into the prevention and deterrence of fraud. The SEC holds conferences to discuss the enforcement of the securities laws and actions taken by the federal and state regulators.
The individuals at the civil and criminal levels do understand that all frauds are not alike and they are caused by a variety of factors and influences. The goal is to stop the fraud early before much harm is done to investors. Identifying weaknesses, deficiencies, and violations helps with improving compliance controls for the protection of investors.
However, you can only protect the investor so far. It is also important to educate individuals both companies and investors how ways to protect themselves against fraud, and ensure to conduct regulatory examinations to ensure firms have robust compliance systems to prevent and detect fraud and other violations. Lastly, aggressively prosecuting those who commit the act can act as a major deterrence (Richards., 2008).
Mediation and arbitration are forms of alternative dispute resolution that are intended to avoid the high cost and unpredictable outcome that could result in a lawsuit.
This is usually handled as a private matter and it allows the parties involved to establish their own ground rules for settling their dispute, including what types of evidence can be presented, what kinds of experts can be consulted, and the concepts on which the final agreement or decisions will be based on. Mediation is a more informal process for resolving a dispute while arbitration is a more formal process for resolving disputes (AllLaw., 2022).
The department of Justice takes the Fraud Section very seriously. It plays a unique and essential role in the fight against sophisticated economic crime.
The Fraud Section investigates and prosecutes complex white-collar crime cases throughout the country, as well as, plays a role in the development of Department policy, implements enforcement initiatives, and advises the Department leadership on matters of legislation, crime prevention, and public education.
In addition, the section assists prosecutors, regulators, law enforcement, and the private sector by providing training, advice, and other assistance (The United States Department of Justice., 2022).
