What does a Certified Fraud Examiner do?

WHAT DOES A CERTIFIED FRAUD EXAMINER DO?

A certified fraud examiner is a specialist who identifies, analyses, investigates and prevents workplace fraud. These specialists possess extensive knowledge and skills in the accounting and financial domains to protect an organisation from fraudulent activities and preserve its reputation. 

A CFE is a trained professional who investigates financial records to find fraudulent activities or other types of financial crimes.” And just as Sherlock Holmes never has the same day twice, there is no typical day for CFEs. They can work in a variety of positions, businesses and industries. Fraud examiner certifications train professionals to recognise signs of fraud related to financial mismanagement, corruption, embezzlement or other frauds within an organisation. The certification delivers special skills in professionals and instils knowledge, expertise and professionalism. However, for a professional to be a certified fraud examiner must be of high moral character and careful attention to detail to effectively perform the roles and responsibilities in the organisation.

A few of the roles and responsibilities of a Certified Fraud Examiner includes-

• Fraud Detection: Certified fraud examiners are skilled at identifying the signs of fraudulent activities related to financial mishandling or other related malicious acts in the organisation. CFEs are trained to proactively monitor and manage financial transactions and documents to identify financial irregularities. 
• Fraud Investigation: Certified fraud examiners conduct thorough investigations in the event of financial mismanagement to get to the root cause of the incident. This process involves CFEs collecting the evidence, analysing it, documenting the findings and then reporting them for bringing the perpetrators to the books. 
• Interviewing: A crucial role of a certified fraud investigator is to interview the suspects, witnesses and other relevant parties as part of the fraud investigation process. CFEs are trained in interviewing skills which enables them to extract accurate, relevant information and leverage it to understand the root cause as well as the suspects behind the fraudulent act. 
• Documentation: Certified fraud examiners need to document the recordings of the investigation and interview to ensure that all the evidence collected is preserved. This preserved evidence is then used for legal proceedings and to find the offenders in the malicious acts. 
• Reporting: Certified fraud examiners are responsible for preparing comprehensive reports on evidence collected and recommendations on the documentation. This process helps CFEs to take appropriate actions, design preventive measures for potential threats, include employee disciplinary actions and create robust process improvement strategies. 
• Fraud Prevention and Deterrence: Certified fraud examiners design and implement fraud prevention and deterrence strategies across the organisation. These strategies help companies improve their controls, process, procedures, and legal compliance to reduce risks, and their impact and have swift recovery procedures in place. 
• Compliance with Regulatory Standards: Organisations need to comply with legal and industry regulations related to financial frauds and CFEs are adept in ensuring businesses maintain that compliance.
• Training and Education: Considering certified fraud examiners are trained in identifying, analysing, and preventing financial fraud-related incidents, they should impart the training to the organisation’s employees to help them be proactive, recognise suspicious activities and report them swiftly. 

Certified fraud examiner in India is a profession that is gaining demand owing to the increasing financial fraud landscape. They play a crucial role in securing the organisation’s assets and reputation. Their expertise in addressing fraud-related incidents is invaluable to organisations for establishing robust internal controls and encouraging ethical behaviour.