Corporate fraud can be committed by internal or external parties. Internal fraud is when an employee, manager, or owner commits fraud against their own company such as conflicts of interest and theft or misuse of company assets. External fraud is committed by third-parties and includes bribery, corruption, hacking, theft and insurance, loans and payment frauds.
Companies can reduce their chances of being victims of corporate fraud and reduce their losses when they do become victims of fraud by having appropriate internal controls; hotlines or other reporting mechanisms for staff and third parties to report suspicions of fraud; fraud awareness training for their staff and suppliers; and clear codes of ethics which management are seen to follow.
Companies should also have incident response plans for how they will respond to fraud or allegations of fraud. Orion can provide support in these situations through the following services –
- Evidence gathering through reviews of documents and CCTV footage and surveillance and background checks on suspects.
- Interviews and interrogations of suspects and witnesses.
- Acquisition and analysis of digital evidence such as mobile phones, computers and data in cloud storage.
- Polygraph tests of suspects.
- Legal advice on appropriate action based on the evidence collected.
- Legal support in taking action against the fraudsters.
Once fraud is suspected or detected, it is important to collect evidence in a forensically sound manner so it can be used in legal proceedings if necessary. Evidence should also be carefully reviewed to determine whether disciplinary or legal action can be taken against the fraudsters.
Companies often rush to confront a fraudster before sufficient evidence has been gathered to strengthen the company’s position which can lead to alerting the fraudsters and giving them an opportunity to destroy evidence and perhaps even evade disciplinary or legal action. It may also expose the company to claims of defamation or wrongful dismissal by the fraudsters.
Orion supports our clients in responding to incidents of fraud appropriately and thereby limiting the financial and reputational damage of the fraud.
Orion’s experienced case managers, investigators, computer forensics experts and lawyers are ready to assist you in dealing with any incidents or allegations of fraud.