NCJ Number
117940
Date Published
1988
Length
19 pages
Annotation
While recorded fraud has constituted a small percentage of all offenses in England and Wales, the cost of fraud crimes is high and can cost victims two or three times as much as the combined total for theft, burglary, and robbery.
Abstract
Three quarters of frauds are committed by employees. In developing a strategy of coping with fraud, the author distinguishes between frauds against individuals and frauds against businesses and points out that a successful fraudster must accomplish three objectives: to obtain the tools of fraud, to use the tools to get goods or monetary instruments; and to convert the goods or instruments into disposable income. Types of fraudsters are distinguished and their appeals to individuals are discussed. Methods of preventing business fraud include entry controls such as employee risk audits and post entry controls such as management systems, compliance monitoring and creditworthiness checking. The prevention of computer fraud is also discussed. The paper concludes that the most effective fraud control measures include employing reliable staff, operating good systems that are regularly monitored, and carrying out company policies of dismissal and prosecution for fraud.