Part of the fraud trends of the future series
Fraudsters seek new ways to exploit private information. Cybercrime and fraud prevention is an evolving field based on the varied tactics used by fraudsters. In order to be prepared to mitigate fraud risks, you must understand the current fraud trends.
The initial segment of this series focused on fraud trends that have been identified for 2023 and beyond. Broadly, these trends include:
• Automation• Account takeover• Adoption of new digital payment methods• Balancing fraud and consumer friction• Rise of synthetic identities• Escalating cost of fraud• Targeted attacks• Strong need for real-time assessment• Need for multi-layered fraud assessment• Account security
In the initial segment, we evaluated areas of automation and machine learning fraud. Subsequent sessions looked at account takeover and digital payments.
Our review of synthetic identity fraud will be examined in two sessions:
• Fraud trends for the future – Understanding synthetic identities• Fraud trends for the future – Mitigation methods for synthetic identity fraud
This session is dedicated to mitigation methods for synthetic identity fraud. Synthetic identity fraud is a type of financial crime where a fraudster creates a fake identity using a combination of real and fictitious personal information. The fake identity is used to apply for credit, open bank accounts, or make purchases, among other activities. This type of fraud is difficult to detect and investigate because of its hybrid nature, making it more challenging for institutions to flag and for law enforcement to track the perpetrators.
Field of Study: Specialized Knowledge
Lynn Fountain has over 45 years of experience spanning public accounting, corporate accounting and consulting. 24 years of her experience has been working in the areas of internal and external auditing. She is a subject matter expert in multiple fields including internal audit, ethics, fraud evaluations, Sarbanes-Oxley, enterprise risk management, governance, financial management and compliance. Ms. Fountain has held two Chief Audit Executive positions for international companies. In 2011, as the Chief Audit Executive for an international construction/ engineering firm, she was involved in the active investigation of a joint venture fraud. The investigation included work with the FBI and ultimately led to indictment of the perpetrators and recovery of $13M. Ms. Fountain is currently engaged in her own training and consulting business and is a regular trainer for the AICPA. Ms. Fountain is the author of three separate technical books. “Raise the Red Flag – The Internal Auditors Guide to Fraud Evaluations” was published by the Institute of Internal Auditors Research Foundation. -“Leading The Internal Audit Function” and -“Ethics and The Internal Auditor Political Dilemma” were published by Taylor & Francis In addition Ms. Fountain was a contributing author to the certification program exam for the National Association of Accountants. She also has certificate programs on various on-line platforms. Ms. Fountain has performed as an adjunct instructor for the School of Business for Grantham University and developed the first internal audit curriculum for the School of Business at the University of Kansas. Ms. Fountain obtained her BSBA from Pittsburg State University and her MBA from Washburn University in Kansas. She has her CGMA, CRMA credentials and CPA certificate (non-active).
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