Fighting Public Sector Fraud: The Growth of Professionalism in Counter-Fraud Investigators
Organizations need to be continually creative in the fight against fraud, and the professionalism of counter-fraud work over the past few years has contributed towards the significant achievements that have been made in this area. This article will discuss various themes surrounding the evolution of a counter-fraud profession, including an assessment of the characteristics of a “typical” counter-fraud specialist, some of the problems that they face in their workplace and the response made by creating an independent association which aims to promote their status and of counter-fraud investigations generally.
Using financial intelligence to target online fraud victimisation: applying a tertiary prevention perspective
Abstract It is well established that policing in an online environment is fraught with challenges. To combat losses attributed to online fraud, Australia has seen the emergence of a victim-oriented approach, which uses financial intelligence to identify potential victims and deliberately intervenes through the sending of a letter. This approach predominantly targets victims of advance fee fraud and romance fraud who are sending money to West African countries. The current article presents three Australian case studies: Project Sunbird (West Australian Police and West Australian Department of Commerce); Operation Disrepair (South Australian Police); and the National Scams Disruption Project (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission). The article locates these cases within existing theory on crime prevention, using available data to document initial positive outcomes. Overall, this article supports the use of a victim-oriented tertiary approach to online fraud, and advocates its potential to reduce both repeat victimisation and the harm incurred through online fraud.
Computer Simulation Modeling
Computer simulation as a research methodology is presented as the intersection of modeling, simulation, and computer analysis. Five component parts of simulation models are identified: input variables, output variables, assumptions, algorithms, and parameters. Computer simulation (CSM) has two primary uses for those interested in the study of organizations or who work within them: theory development and policy planning. The advantages and disadvantages of CSM for each of these purposes are examined and recent examples for each are explored.