Search results

The purpose of this paper is to examine the arrangements and institutions that have been put in place at both the transnational and the national levels to fight fraud against the European budget. It also seeks to consider the experiences of two new Member States, Romania and the Czech Republic, in seeking to build effective anti‐fraud structures and to co‐operate effectively with Brussels.

Semi‐structured interviews are undertaken with officials of the European Anti‐Fraud Office (OLAF), as well as with officials in both Romania and the Czech Republic. A review of secondary materials such as official reports and academic articles is also undertaken.

The fight against European Union (EU) fraud is hampered by a number of factors. Fragmentation occurs at different levels, transnational, national and legal. The lead transnational agency OLAF has not been given the support it requires and has been subjected to a long period of uncertainty regarding its powers and responsibilities. New Member States have been admitted to the EU, but some of them have not been ready in terms of their ability to tackle fraud effectively. These problems are to a large extent self‐inflicted, and make the fight against fraud all the more complex and difficult.

The paper provides an insight into the difficulties facing both OLAF and the agencies of new Member States in terms of fragmentation and seeking to acquire investigative and other technical skills in a very short period of time. It is an addition to a body of literature which is not particularly extensive.

The purpose of this paper is to show a significant overlap in the models accounting research uses for fraud and the models other research disciplines use for greenwashing, and show how researchers and policymakers interested in the application of effective sustainability policy can draw from fraud accounting literature to better understand, and therefore, combat greenwashing. This is illustrated by showing multi-actor information-asymmetry models from other branches of accounting literature and synthesizing them with the fraud triangle model to suggest new avenues for reducing greenwashing and strengthening corporate social responsibility (CSR).

This paper reviews the current literature surrounding the greenwashing aspect of corporate camouflage compares the legal and technical definitions of fraud and synthesizes a new variant fraud triangle that more usefully describes greenwashing.

This paper is able to show that other areas of accounting research in North America have already tackled similar systems of multiple actors in an information-asymmetric environment and that a recurring trait is the emergence of a more robust reporting system. CSR reporting is currently in the process of emerging and could develop more swiftly by copying extant fraud-fighting tools. This is particularly salient given the increasing amount of liability legal regimes are giving to both sustainability activities and sustainability reporting from firms, as evidenced in both guidelines and scandals over the past decade.

Sustainability reporting is not unique in comprising a large number of interrelated entities with non-financial information asymmetry between actors. Previous researchers have encountered similar situations in government accounting and public administration and developed network models to study these relationships as a result. In government accounting, this led to the development both of better diagnostic tools for further research and better models for local governments to use to prevent fraud and malfeasance. This paper suggests that using such research methods in the area of CSR will allow for the development of similarly-useful tools and models.

Visualizing greenwashing as a form of fraud allows policymakers to use tools from the fraud-fighting literature to improve CSR reporting and produce a more robust regime in the future. As governments increasingly seek to respond effectively to material misstatements with an intent to deceive in sustainability reports, understanding the underlying information asymmetry as it is found in other private-public interfaces is critical. Similarly, researchers can analyze CSR reporting through the lens of fraud researchers to gain novel insights into how information asymmetry in CSR reporting works.

Greenwashing is not traditionally seen as a form of fraudulent reporting, even though it often meets the same technical test used to determine fraudulent reporting. The realization that the two are structurally similar allows the authors to better understand how CSR reporting works and how CSR reporting can be falsified. By understanding the latter, governments, firms and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can develop tools to prevent CSR reporting from being falsified.

This paper suggests a new suite of tools with which to study greenwashing, and with which to fight greenwashing in a sustainability accounting context.

This article aims to focus on the impact of the current austerity measures on UK public sector anti-fraud and financial crime investigative resource capacity building initiative developed over the years to tackle fraud against the public purse.

The article draws on secondary sources of data and available literature on fraud and financial crime.

Fraud is a challenge in the UK public sector but the cut-back on anti-fraud and financial crime investigative resources, given the scale of public sector fraud, the growing emphasis on accountability and the time of austerity with public money more exposed to fraud is arguably a back-door/u-turn policy on zero-tolerance approach in tackling public sector fraud and financial crime. There is the potential of this encouraging more fraud and financial crime against the public sector in the long term if measures are not taken to devise strategies for enhancing anti-fraud and financial crime investigative resource capacity.

The research implication for this article is that it opens an avenue for future studies to examine post austerity strategies for strengthening public sector anti-fraud and financial crime investigative resource strategies to deal with emerging fraud threats to UK public sector.

This article acts as a reference guide for policymakers to reflect on the long-term adverse impact of the austerity on anti-fraud and financial crime investigative resource capacity and capability in tackling fraud public sector fraud.

The paper attempts to present an alternative lens to examining the scale of UK public sector fraud problem rather than relying on headline story of declining fraud in UK.

The purpose of this paper is to test the association between national culture dimensions and exposure to fraud with a view to drawing implications for understanding fraud risk.

The study is based on a sample of 66 countries. Regression analysis is conducted using Hofstede’s national culture dimensions as independent variables and fraud risk as a dependent variable. Transparency International’s corruption index was used as a proxy for fraud risk.

Results suggest high fraud risk exposure in countries with high power distance and those having limited long-term orientations.

The study informs deeper understanding of fraud risk through analysis of fraud risk in a culturally relative sense.

This is the first study (known to the author) to draw the implications of national culture for understanding fraud risk.

This paper aims to measure the extent of effects of insurance fraud on the financial performance of insurance companies in Ghana. It also examines the causes and stringent measures that can be used to fight against insurance fraud.

Primary and secondary data obtained from 39 insurers in Ghana are used in this paper. A multiple regression model is used to determine the relationship between financial performance and insurance fraud variables.

The results from the model indicate that statistically insurance fraud has a significant negative effect on the annual return on assets (financial performance) of insurers in Ghana. Also, weak internal controls, poor remuneration of employees, falsified documents, deliberate acts of policyholders to profit from the insurance contract and inadequate training for independent brokers are found to be the major causes of insurance fraud in Ghana. To deter insurance fraud, effective internal fraud policy, rigorous assessment of insurance policies and claims, adequate training for independent brokers on insurance fraud and modern information technology tools are paramount in fighting this menace in Ghana.

These findings are to have substantial impact on the techniques insurance companies will develop to fight insurance fraud and the policies that will be developed by governments and national insurance regulatory bodies to fight this menace.

The main value of this paper is the determination of the key variables that constitute insurance fraud and their impacts on the annual financial performance of insurance companies in Ghana.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the role of the European Anti‐Fraud Office, OLAF, in the fight against EU fraud and to consider the difficulties and problems it has to contend with in attempting to carry out its mission.

The approach adopted was to carry out a number of semi‐structured interviews with relevant officials and to review secondary materials such as reports by the European Commission, the European Court of Auditors and OLAF itself.

The paper finds a high degree of both organisational and legal fragmentation as well as difficulties caused by the personnel policies of the European Commission leading to a significant staff turnover often in the midst of complex investigations.

It provides an insight into the difficulties faced by OLAF such as the degree of fragmentation with a multiplicity of agencies involved in the fight against fraud and is a contribution to an area, which does not contain a great amount of academic literature.

Cites the fight against fraud as a high priority for European citizens, European institutions and national parliaments. Asks what path the European institutions follow since the adoption of the founding treaties in order to combat fraud and its inevitable effects. Overviews the connection between the allocation of competence and the legal basis principle concerning anti‐fraud policy. Follows by tackling the effects of budgetary mechanisms and finishes by attempting to shed light on the development of internal anti‐fraud structures within the Commission. Allows the reader to understand the conflict between the acquisition of powers for the Community institutions to fight fraud and the protection of criminal law jurisdiction as the prerogative of the national state.

The FSA Financial Crime Sector Leader, Philip Robinson, outlined the FSA's new policy on fraud within the regulated sector in his October 2004 speech. The FSA subsequently undertook a review of 16 regulated firms and how to prevent and detect fraud. This paper considers the findings of the FSA's Firm's High‐Level Management of Fraud Risk Report and the reference to financial crime in the FSA's recent Financial Risk Outlook 2006 and Business Plan 2005/2006.

The topic has been approached to consider the development of the FSA's policy on fraud with reference to speeches and policy documents.

That financial crime is a significant threat to the financial services sector. Firms have taken proactive steps to tackie fraud, but more can be done. The 2006 may see greater focus by the FSA on firms' anti‐fraud measures.

In examining the FSA's policy on anti‐fraud management this papers seek identify what the FSA requires from firms in terms of anti‐fraud measures. This paper should be of interest to compliance officers, MLRO Officers, fraud investigators and regulatory lawyers.

Fraud has a significant effect on society. It has been estimated to cost the UK economy more than £50bn annually. The Government have signalled their determination to tackle these losses through a range of preventative, enforcement and collaborative activities. Diminishing police resources allocated to fraud means that this activity will need to be delivered by both law enforcement and civilian counter fraud teams. This paper aims to establish whether UK central government organisations have the legal powers, skills and regulation needed to tackle fraud effectively.

This research was based upon a literature review, which included academic and other material, a semi-structured interview programme and a survey of counter fraud champions.

Empirical data suggested that the effectiveness of central government civilian counter fraud teams is hampered by a fragmented legal landscape and a lack of skills, and that further professionalisation and regulation is needed to protect professional standards and individual legal rights.

Postal survey had 50 per cent response rate – below gold standard of 70 per cent.

There are no practical implications, as this is a topical research area which is intended to inform counter fraud practice and development.

This research highlights limitations on the UK central government’s ability to tackle fraud. There is therefore a low risk that, when published, this research could inform those considering fraudulent actions.

This research was undertaken for a professional doctorate and has been sent to the Cabinet Office to inform their professionalisation programme. It filled a potential gap in the academic literature by looking at the perceived powers, skills and regulatory pressures in place within the UK central government and the extent of the current gap between current practice and the delivery of a fully professionalised service.