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This paper examines the role of professional associations, governmental agencies, and international accounting and auditing bodies in promulgating standards to deter and detect fraud, domestically and abroad. Specifically, it focuses on the role played by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA), the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), the US Government Accounting Office (GAO), and other national and foreign professional associations, in promulgating auditing standards and procedures to prevent fraud in financial statements and other white‐collar crimes. It also examines several fraud cases and the impact of management and employee fraud on the various business sectors such as insurance, banking, health care, and manufacturing, as well as the role of management, the boards of directors, the audit committees, auditors, and fraud examiners and their liability in the fraud prevention and investigation.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze an ongoing fraud case in the US Navy involving the procurement of ship-husbanding services. The fraud acts will be analyzed from three perspectives–contract life cycle, internal controls and fraud schemes.

A data search was conducted to collect publicly available documents issued by the US Department of Justice (DOJ). A content analysis was used to analyze the fraud acts by aligning them with the contracting phase, internal control component and fraud scheme category.

The majority of the fraud occurred in the contracting phases of contract administration, followed by procurement planning and then source selection. The majority of the fraud occurred because of internal control component weaknesses in the control environment followed by information and communications. The majority of the fraud was aligned with the fraud scheme of collusion, followed by billing, cost and pricing.

Because this is an ongoing investigation, additional DOJ information will become available and provide additional insight on the contracting phase, internal control component and fraud scheme.

The analysis suggests that the Navy’s lack of trained personnel, capable processes and effective internal controls result in the increased vulnerability to procurement fraud in its husbanding support services program.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to analyze fraud through the lens of auditability theory, specifically by the contracting phase and internal control component. Public agencies can enhance fraud detection and deterrence efforts by understanding how weaknesses in contracting processes and internal controls may increase an organization’s vulnerabilities for fraudulent activities.

There is a broad description of fraud debated by academics around the world. The definition of fraud differs between governments, criminal justice departments and private entities. Some questions can make this study important to explain the concept of fraud. This study aims to define the legal concept of fraud. The concept of a word is important to discuss because it explains the meaning of a word and that could answer the question on Macau scam – a fraud?

The content analysis is the research design of this study. Data were obtained by document analysis, including books, papers, journals, case reports and other records relating to fraud. The methods used to interpret the data for this qualitative research are empirical, deductive and inductive.

This study found that the concept of fraud has not yet been defined. This can give rise to a broad interpretation, depending on the action taken by the parties in the cases. On the basis of the context of the dictionary, fraud may be said to be the same thing as deception. Sometimes, the use of words to convey things that are different from, and even at odds with, the actual sense of words. Whereas, from a legal point of view, fraud still occurs as a matter of fact to be determined. This study showed that Macau scam is a fraud.

The implication of this analysis is for scholars and legal professionals to assess the principle of fraud prior to the accusation.

Nigeria has been invaded by ingenious and dare devil fraudsters comprising her own nationals and aliens. The proportion and frequency of the activities of these syndicates in perpetuating organised economic crimes are alarming not only to Nigerian society but to the international community. The frightening degree of sophistication in the mode of operation aided by modern communication gadgets, electronics, telecommunication equipment such as telex, fascimiles, computers etc have ensured the speedy commission of criminal activity. Huge sums of money and much property has been lost through dishonest means and wrongfully acquired by these parasites. This dangerous trend must be arrested if sanity, security, confidence and a viable economy are to be restored. It is clear that the statutory provisions governing economic crimes, particularly obtaining by false pretences, stealing and theft of funds, other crimes committed with the aid of forgery, offences relating to consumers' fraud in the form of false advertising, production or supply of substandard goods, tax evasion, fraudulent/fake/disguiscd bankruptcy, over‐invoicing, maritime fraud schemes, falsifying books of account, bank frauds, false statements made to auditors or inside a company's prospectus and the penalties stipulated therein are now inadequate for the containment of these economic and organised crimes. Therefore, legislation more punitive, more drastic, even ruthless is required to eradicate or save society from the scourges of crime and express the dislike, anger, disgust and vengeance of the public. The piece of legislation styled Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences, Decree No. 13 (1995) ‘AFFAOFRO’, hereinafter called the ‘Decree’, is a remarkable one which wields a sledgehammer. It is a statute of very strict liability by virtue of several ranges of stiffer penalties stipulated for the various categories of offences. Below is an examination of the framework of the more noteworthy provisions and the resultant impact on the existing common law, statutory rules and recommended reforms.

Insurance is a dynamic business highly affected by the environment it operates in. Alongside the practice of insurance, come principles on which the business of insurance is based. One of the principles, that is not short of controversy, is the doctrine of utmost good faith which requires full disclosure of material facts by the contracting parties. The author, in this chapter, explored the need for change in the regulation of this insurance principle and discussed the drivers behind these changes and the commensurate effect on the practice of insurance. The author delved into case studies, practices and literature and traced back to the origins of the long-standing principle of utmost good faith. This principle is one on which the acceptance (or otherwise) and premium of an insurance contract is based and through which certain factors and developments in the industry have led to a major reform in some jurisdiction.

The author discussed the development and drivers leading to reform and concluded that reform is ultimately the result of public outcry, through individual cases heard predominantly in court, a well-established reform committee, the socio-political environment of that country and the advent of technology. Moreover, although, different countries have their own jurisdictions, laws and regulations as well as market practices and international trade have made it imperative to have common technical practices between market players especially in insurance, which depends on the spread of risks between countries internationally. Smooth insurance business can only be established if this reform is harmonised between jurisdictions.

The purpose of this paper is to compare a new anti-corruption law approved by the Italian Parliament in November 2012 with Italian treaty obligations, the international evaluation reports on the Italian anti-corruption regime elaborated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Council of Europe, the best practice guidelines and other European models. The year 2012 has marked a turning point in Italian anti-corruption policy. In response to the low ranking that Italy has in all international anti-corruption indices, the critiques expressed in international reports on its anti-corruption regime, and the increasing pressure of public opinion, the Italian parliament approved the new anti-corruption law.

The Law was preceded by critiques in the mass media and has been labelled as a token act. To evaluate the effectiveness of the steps undertaken by the Italian Parliament, this paper compares the new law with Italian treaty obligations, the international evaluation reports on the Italian anti-corruption regime elaborated by the OECD and the Council of Europe, the best practice guidelines and other European models (i.e. the UK Bribery Act).

This comparison gives the author the opportunity not only to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the law but also to suggest efficient solutions that the Italian legislator could have adopted.

So far, this is the only analysis in English of the changes introduced in the Italian anti-corruption regime in 2012. Several international colleagues and practitioners have asked the author about the new regime and it was therefore deemed appropriate to address the issue in an academic article.

This paper aims to determine whether tax evasion savings qualify as unlawful proceeds for money laundering purposes. Litigators, regulators and academics have debated the question for decades. A common argument is that tax evasion allows a bad actor to save money that the perpetrator already has on hand. It does not produce a new inflow of wealth that could properly be classified as proceeds. This paper addresses the validity of this argument by using a substance-based approach.

This paper applies the substance-over-form principle and two specialized judicial doctrines to the matter: the economic-substance and step-transaction doctrines.

This paper finds that in substance, tax evasion savings qualify as unlawful proceeds. The opposing argument may be valid on the surface, but it does not withstand the scrutiny of the substance-based principle and insights from the doctrines.

The finding of this paper implies that any courts which value substance can embrace tax evasion savings as unlawful proceeds. Government prosecutors can adopt the position with confidence that substance backs them up. National regulators can push the point. The United Nations’ Financial Action Task Force can consider the option to more explicitly recommend treating tax evasion savings as unlawful proceeds for money laundering.

Using a unique substance-based approach, this paper demonstrates that a dollar of tax evasion savings is substantively equivalent to a dollar of unlawful tax refund proceeds for money laundering purposes. Focusing on an unlawful tax refund overcomes many of the common concerns raised against the treatment of tax evasion savings as unlawful proceeds.

The purpose of this paper is to show the public, in general, and auditors, in particular, that in the absence of control there is always a risk of fraud. Fraud can be done in various forms. Larceny may be the most obvious case of fraud, but fraud may be done in many other ways too. Balance sheet fraud or financial statements fraud is a broader issue; it is far-fetched than a few hundred dollars of a larceny case. In financial statement fraud, the deep down effect may be millions or billions of dollars.

The paper has been designed based on a fraud theory. The author has observed the implications of a possible fraud in a real audit case. The fraud theory has been tested through financial analysis and audit tests. The theory has then been revised and the existence of a financial statement fraud has been proven.

The paper explores that banks and group companies controlled by unreliable owners can lead to misuse of public's funds in accordance with the directives of the owner. Public's money can be transferred to other group companies in an illegal manner – in excessive amounts – and never returned to the bank by means of applying different accounting fraud techniques.

Auditors, who may audit group companies that include a bank or banks with deposit receiving and lending rights, should pay attention to the transactions between the group's bank and the other group companies. The lending may be excessive in amount and/or never paid back and the financial statements would be misrepresented covering various fraud schemes.

The case that the paper deals with reflects the author's own audit experiences. The names of the companies have been changed but not the essence of the events. From this perspective, it sheds light onto the path of an auditor who happens to be in a similar situation.

This paper aims to systematically review over two decades of academic articles on romance fraud to provide a holistic insight into this crime and identify literature gaps.

More than two decades of peer-reviewed academic journal articles from 2000 to 2023 were systematically reviewed using multiple search engines and databases for relevant papers, identified through searches of paper titles, keywords, abstracts and primary texts.

The findings reveal 10 themes: i) the definitions and terminology of romance fraud; ii) romance fraud’s impact on victims; iii) the profile of romance fraud criminals and victims; iv) romance fraud methods and techniques; v) why victims become susceptible to romance fraud; vi) the psychology of romance fraud criminals; vii) the links between romance fraud and other crimes; viii) the challenges of investigating romance fraud; ix) preventing romance fraud and protecting victims; and x) how romance fraud victims can be supported.

The paper reveals implications regarding the future direction of policy and strategy to address the pervasive low reporting rates and narratives of shame bound with victims of this crime.

Romance fraud is a serious crime against individuals with impacts beyond financial losses. Still, this fraud type is under-researched, and the literature lacks a holistic view of this crime. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first systematic literature review providing a holistic view of romance fraud. It combines evidence across the academic landscape to reveal the breadth and depth of the current work concerning romance fraud and identify gaps in the understanding of this fraud crime.