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Article
Publication date: 4 July 2023

Benjamin Scott

This paper aims to examine the history of data leaks and investigative journalism, the techniques and technology that enable them and their influence in Australia and abroad. It…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the history of data leaks and investigative journalism, the techniques and technology that enable them and their influence in Australia and abroad. It explores the ethical and professional considerations of investigative journalists, how they approach privacy and information-sharing and how this differs from intelligence practice in government and industry. The paper assesses the strengths and limitations of Collaborative Investigative Reporting based on Information Leaks (CIRIL) as a kind of public-facing intelligence practice.

Design/methodology/approach

This study draws on academic literature, source material from investigations by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, and a survey of financial crime compliance professionals conducted in 2022.

Findings

The paper identifies three key causal factors that have enabled the rise of CIRIL even as traditional journalism has declined: the digital storage of information; increasing public interest in offshore finance and tax evasion; and “virtual newsrooms” enabled by internet communications. It concludes that the primary strength of CIRIL is its creation of complex global narratives to inform the public about corruption and tax evasion, while its key weakness is that the scale and breadth of the data released makes it difficult to focus on likely criminal activity. Results of a survey of industry and government professionals indicate that CIRIL is generally more effective as public information than as an investigative resource, owing to the volume, age and quality of information released. However, the trends enabling CIRIL are likely to continue, and this means that governments and financial institutions need to become more effective at using leaked information.

Originality/value

Over the past decade, large-scale, data-driven investigative journalism projects such as the Pandora Papers and the Russian Laundromat have had a significant public impact by exposing money laundering, financial crime and corruption. These projects share certain hallmarks: the use of human intelligence, often sourced from anonymous leaks; inventive fusion of this intelligence with data from open sources; and collaboration among a global collective of investigative journalists to build a narrative. These projects prioritise informing the public. They are also an important information source for government and private sector organisations working to investigate and disrupt financial crime.

Details

Journal of Financial Crime, vol. 31 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-0790

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 May 2024

Neveen Barakat, Liana Hajeir, Sarah Alattal, Zain Hussein and Mahmoud Awad

The objective of this paper is to develop a condition-based maintenance (CBM) scheme for pneumatic cylinders. The CBM scheme will detect two common types of air leaking failure…

Abstract

Purpose

The objective of this paper is to develop a condition-based maintenance (CBM) scheme for pneumatic cylinders. The CBM scheme will detect two common types of air leaking failure modes and identify the leaky/faulty cylinder. The successful implementation of the proposed scheme will reduce energy consumption, scrap and rework, and time to repair.

Design/methodology/approach

Effective implementation of maintenance is important to reduce operation cost, improve productivity and enhance quality performance at the same time. Condition-based monitoring is an effective maintenance scheme where maintenance is triggered based on the condition of the equipment monitored either real time or at certain intervals. Pneumatic air systems are commonly used in many industries for packaging, sorting and powering air tools among others. A common failure mode of pneumatic cylinders is air leaks which is difficult to detect for complex systems with many connections. The proposed method consists of monitoring the stroke speed profile of the piston inside the pneumatic cylinder using hall effect sensors. Statistical features are extracted from the speed profiles and used to develop a fault detection machine learning model. The proposed method is demonstrated using a real-life case of tea packaging machines.

Findings

Based on the limited data collected, the ensemble machine learning algorithm resulted in 88.4% accuracy. The algorithm can detect failures as soon as they occur based on majority vote rule of three machine learning models.

Practical implications

Early air leak detection will improve quality of packaged tea bags and provide annual savings due to time to repair and energy waste reduction. The average annual estimated savings due to the implementation of the new CBM method is $229,200 with a payback period of less than two years.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first in terms of proposing a CBM for pneumatic systems air leaks using piston speed. Majority, if not all, current detection methods rely on expensive equipment such as infrared or ultrasonic sensors. This paper also contributes to the research gap of economic justification of using CBM.

Details

Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2511

Keywords

Expert briefing
Publication date: 1 March 2024

This leak included corporate documents and internal communications, and detailed a suite of spyware applications developed by Shanghai-based cybersecurity company I-Soon, a…

Executive summary
Publication date: 23 February 2024

CHINA: I-Soon data leaks embarrass Beijing

Details

DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-ES285453

ISSN: 2633-304X

Keywords

Geographic
Topical
Case study
Publication date: 1 April 2024

Christopher E. Weilage and Patricia Kraft

This case was developed from a primary source and is based on interviews and personal evaluations.

Abstract

Research methodology

This case was developed from a primary source and is based on interviews and personal evaluations.

Case overview/synopsis

Maria was at a scheduled lunch with her direct manager, John, who inquired about the privacy leak regarding employee data she had found a few months earlier. Upon discovering the issue, Maria took on the task of ensuring the privacy leak was dealt with and resolved. John knew it was a challenging interdepartmental task because other managers did not immediately recognize the seriousness and full impact of the issue on employee privacy. Plus, the belief was that the project to combine two software programs improving CRM functionality, causing the employee data leak, needed immediate release. During the lunch, Maria stated that the privacy problem was fully eliminated and that, in the end, it did impact a lot more than only a few employees. John actively encouraged Maria in the conversation to seek feedback from Richard, the managing director directly involved and responsible for the project, which Maria had already done. When the feedback arrived, Maria felt extremely hurt by the comments and began to question the validity of the company’s values. Now, she must decide what her options are.

This case study is about dealing with feedback, career development and how to receive and provide feedback. It presents a situation that allows for a variety of ways to address negative feedback and shows that different reactions can have broader consequences for career development. At the same time, the case illustrates how feedback is given in international teams and companies, and how intercultural or gender-relevant circumstances may have to be considered.

Complexity academic level

This case study was written for use in BA and MA classes to promote discussion regarding feedback. Relevant courses in business and administration or an international business study program could be organizational behavior, communication training, conflict management, an intercultural competencies course or in line with career management sequences.

Early program BA students, BA students in advanced semesters as well as MA students with work experience are all markets for the case. It has been class-tested with BA international business students. While advanced BA and graduate students are able to and expected to enrich discussions by contributing personal stories, early program BA students benefit from learning how to create feedback and how to read feedback – including from other students, instructors and managers, to use during their first internships.

Details

The CASE Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Case Study
ISSN: 1544-9106

Keywords

Executive summary
Publication date: 4 March 2024

GERMANY: Audio leak to complicate missile decision

Details

DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-ES285645

ISSN: 2633-304X

Keywords

Geographic
Topical
Article
Publication date: 2 April 2024

Jane Andrew and Max Baker

This study explores a hegemonic alliance and the role of relational forms of accounting and accountablity in the making of contemporary capitalism.

Abstract

Purpose

This study explores a hegemonic alliance and the role of relational forms of accounting and accountablity in the making of contemporary capitalism.

Design/methodology/approach

We use the WikiLeaks “Cablegate” documents to provide an account of the detailed machinations between interest groups (corporations and the state) that are constitutive of hegemonic activity.

Findings

Our analysis of the “Cablegate” documents shows that the US and Chevron were crafting a central role for Turkmenistan and its president on the global political stage as early as 2007, despite offical reporting beginning only in 2009. The documents exemplify how “accountability gaps” occlude the understanding of interdependence between capital and the state.

Research limitations/implications

The study contributes to a growing idea that official accounts offer a fictionalized narrative of corporations as existing independently, and thus expands the boundaries associated with studying multinational corporate activities to include their interdependencies with the modern state.

Social implications

The study traces how global capitalism extends into new territories through diplomatic channels, as a strategic initiative between powerful state and capital interests, arguing that the outcome is the empowerment of authoritarian states at the cost of democracy.

Originality/value

The study argues that previous accounting and accountability research has overlooked the larger picture of how capital and the state work together to secure a mutual hegemonic interest. We advocate for a more complete account of these activities that circumvents official, often restricted, views of global capitalism.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 May 2023

Abhiyan Upadhyay

The purpose of this paper is to understand the financial opaqueness established through offshore businesses and financial secrecy through the requirements of information…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand the financial opaqueness established through offshore businesses and financial secrecy through the requirements of information exchanges, and their deadly combination for facilitating money-laundering activities and tax evasion. It also puts into light some key recommendations for a country like Nepal that has been struggling to put adequate efforts into understanding financial opacity and secrecy.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper navigates through global issues on layering through opaque corporate structures, and mechanisms required for information exchange so as to figure out solutions and challenges to address them by developing countries like Nepal, with specific actions pertaining to Nepal.

Findings

Understanding financial opacity and secrecy is a prerequisite to tackling financial crimes. While focusing on global solutions and inherent challenges regarding such issues, concerted efforts are required to capacitate a country on contextual matters.

Originality/value

This work is an original work with an analysis of a global issue in an interconnected world with solutions catered to the local contexts of Nepal.

Article
Publication date: 5 September 2023

Adeoye Johnson Adetunji

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of the rule of law, corporate governance and freedom of expression on the effectiveness of whistleblowing initiatives…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of the rule of law, corporate governance and freedom of expression on the effectiveness of whistleblowing initiatives. This study interrogates the effectiveness of whistleblowing as a tool in combating economic and financial crimes, in political and corporate environments where good governance and the rule of law are firmly established and enforceable and where defamation is decriminalised.

Design/methodology/approach

The author conducted a comprehensive review of relevant textbooks, focusing on legal theories and concepts related to the research topic. This study analysed scholarly journal articles to gain insights into the current debates and research gaps. The author discussed seminal court decisions that have influenced the legal landscape pertaining to the research topic and reviewed newspaper publications to understand public opinion and societal implications related to the research topic.

Findings

To ensure effective whistleblowing as a tool of gathering information in combating economic and financial crime, good governance must be promoted, supremacy of law must be upheld, freedom of expression must be safeguarded and defamation must be criminalised.

Originality/value

This paper addresses a significant gap in the literature by examining the impact of criminal libel on whistleblowing, an area that has received limited attention in previous studies. The findings of this study have significant implications for policymakers, as they shed light on importance of the rule of law, good governance, freedom of speech and decriminalisation of defamation on effective implementation of an effective whistleblowing laws and policies.

Details

Journal of Money Laundering Control, vol. 27 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1368-5201

Keywords

Expert briefing
Publication date: 22 April 2024

Kishida and Biden hailed a historic upgrade in defence ties and announced a record volume of around 70 agreements, spanning various sectors.

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