...heard of a financial ploy called a Ponzi scheme. However, many may not fully understand the details or how to protect themselves from such a financial risk. A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment plan in which the investments of later investors are used to pay earlier investors, giving the appearance that the investments of the initial participants dramatically increase in value in a short amount of time. These types of financial schemes promise investors large interest returns if they provide money as a loan. As more new investors participate, the money that is contributed by later investors is paid to the initial investors, allegedly at the promised interest on their loans. This method works initially, but will then fold as more investors participate and choose to take withdrawals. Though these types of schemes have happened before, the first of this caliber was documented in the 1920’s by its namesake, Charles Ponzi. In 2008, Bernard “Bernie” Madoff was exposed for running the largest Ponzi scheme to date, conning investors out of over $65 billion over thirty years. INTRODUCTION Bernard Madoff was responsible for the largest reported Ponzi scheme in history. How did this happen? Who else knew about it? Why did it take so long for him to be exposed? This paper will endeavor to answer all of those questions and more. This paper will offer dialogue into how Madoff’s scheme differed from a traditional Ponzi scheme and understand the ethical, emotional and financial fallout to...
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...stock. They include: spreading false or misleading information about a company; improperly limiting the number of publicly-available shares; or rigging quotes, prices or trades to create a false or deceptive picture of the demand for a security. Those who engage in manipulation are subject to various civil and criminal sanctions.” This definition is the foundation of how manipulation of any sort in business is not only unethical, but is also illegal. Following the definition given by the SEC, one can learn about manipulation in business and the problems it can cause. Goldstein, J. (1992). An Investment Masquerade: A Descriptive Overview of Penny Stock Fraud and The Federal Securities Laws. The Business Lawyer, 47(2), 773-835. (1992, February 1). Retrieved September 8, 2014, from J-stor. This article describes how penny stock fraud works. It surveys the various deceptive practices and fraudulent techniques that promoters, broker-dealers and others employ in manipulating the market for penny stock. It also summarizes the principal statutory and regulatory provisions in the federal securities laws that are relevant in attempting to regulate the penny stock market. Penny stock manipulation is one of the most common types of manipulation in business and has in many cases made someone very rich. Continual manipulation of penny stocks has shown that a person will do anything to make a “buck”. Not only is it against the law it is immoral and not how the Lord intends man...
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...ACG 3401 Study Guide Exam 1 Accountants Roles * Management accountant * Internal auditor * Information systems auditor * External auitor * Tax accountant * Fraud examiner * Managerial Accountant * Provides info for mngmt decisions * Knowledge base: * * * * Business processes * Accounting information sustems * Internal controls * Managerial accouting techniques * Impact of accounting on behaviors Advocate for best info possible for making the best decision for the firm IMA Information criteria: 1. 2. 3. 4. Forward looking 5. Timely 6. Responsibility oriented Planning Systems (budgets) control systems (implement the course of action and evaluate) Management accounting answers questions related to : * * * * * Important customers ( profitability) * Substitute products * Critical capability * Funding ( growth) Value ( Adam Smith) * Value in use- derive value by using the product * Value in exchange- derive value from the exchange of that product for another good or service. Generic Value Chain Model: 1. 2. 3. 4. *Customer need identitified* 5. Identify the market and create the product/ service ( innovation cycle) 6. Build the product or service and deliver the product or service ( operations cycle) 7. Service the customer ( post sales service cycle) ...
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...Review Shawn Detamore January 29, 2012 Payroll fraud schemes happen when an employee generates overcompensation for themselves. There are three types of payroll fraud schemes; ghost employees, bonus and commission schemes and falsified hours and salary (Shields, 2009). This type of fraud accounts for 17% of fraud that is committed in organizations (Shields, 2009). Back in May of 2009, a payroll manager and a retired employee of the Detroit Public School system worked together to steal over $400,000 from the school. They scammed the school by forming a payroll scheme. The payroll manager, Toni Gilbert cut checks to Anthony Carter who had retired back in 2000. When Toni did this, Carter not only received his retirement check, he was also receiving a regular paycheck from the school. This “extra” check that Carter received was split between himself and Mr. Gilbert. Gilbert had worked for the school for over 20 years. In those twenty years, five of them were spent committing fraud. Since the fraud was committed at a school, this constitutes as a federal crime. They were stealing money from the taxpayer dollars. If they are convicted, both employees will face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and have to pay a fine of $250,000 (Detroit). Luckily for DPS, the financial Manager and DPS office inspector are the ones that caught the corruption. Since the indictment, DPS is hoping to send out a strong message that fraud will not be tolerated. They have also started doing...
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...to curb these scandals. 1. Introduction In the recent years, the public and business community have been surprised with the exposure of many corporate scandals and accounting fraud by the managers of the company. It disappoints many stakeholders as after the financial crisis in 1997, many efforts have been initiated and implemented to strengthen the business control and foundation of the company. One of the important lessons learned from the financial crisis in 1997 is the weaknesses in the governance of the company such as too much power is given to a single person in managing the company, weak internal control and poor work of the directors that leads to the failure of the company. Due to this, a total regulatory and governance were embarked all over the world. Just to name a few, in the US, the Sarbanese Oxley Act was established, while in the UK the Code of Corporate Governance was extensively revised to stop all these corporate diseases from spreading and becoming a cancer for the global business community. However, all this effort has seemed fruitless as after the heavy debate and discussion and huge struggle by the regulator and market administrator, these corporate scandals are still returning but with more scaring facts. 1.1 What do we mean by Fraud and Misconduct • Fraud is a broad concept that generally refers to “any intentional act committed to secure an unfair or unlawful gain” • Misconduct is also a broad concept and generally refers to “violations...
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...An Analysis of Fraud: Causes, Prevention, and Notable Cases Kristin A. Kennedy University of New Hampshire - Main Campus, kaj79@wildcats.unh.edu Follow this and additional works at: http://scholars.unh.edu/honors Part of the Accounting Commons Recommended Citation Kennedy, Kristin A., "An Analysis of Fraud: Causes, Prevention, and Notable Cases" (2012). Honors Theses. Paper 100. This Senior Honors Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Scholarship at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For more information, please contact scholarly.communication@unh.edu. An Analysis of Fraud: Causes, Prevention, and Notable Cases University of New Hampshire Honors Thesis in Accounting Kristin Kennedy ADMN 799 Professor Le (Emily) Xu Fall 2012 Table of Contents I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. Background……………………………………………………………........1 a. What is accounting and what role does financial reporting serve?..........1 b. History of accounting standards………………………………………..2 c. Role of auditing………………………………………………………...5 Fraud……………………………………………………………………….6 a. Two types of fraud……………………………………………………..6 i. Misappropriation of Assets…………………………………….7 ii. Misrepresentation of Financial Statements…………………….7 b. Fraud Triangle………………………………………………………….8 c. What to look for in a fraudster…………………………………………9 Past Cases of Fraud………………………………………………………...
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...Anatomy of a Fraud Project Abraham Kennard: The False Profit Alisan James Forensic Accounting November 25, 2013 Dr. N. Sharma Abstract The goals and objectives of a fraud investigation are to think critically and creatively to be able to prepare and organize ideas to uncover a suspected fraud. Crook, hustler, swindler, fraudster and con artist are all used interchangeably to describe someone who will spare no expense to deliberately and intentionally achieve an advantage over another by false statements and suppression of truth. Fraud is elevated to another level when the con artist aims and targets investments scams towards members of a specific group, particularly religious groups. This is commonly referred to as, affinity fraud. This paper will extensively and thoroughly evaluate the anatomy of the fraud perpetrated by Abraham Kennard, an inappropriately named man of God who viewed the weaknesses of the African-American church to use his big personality and persuasive attitude to ultimately scam nearly 1,600 churches in 41 states, totaling almost $9 million. This paper will also discuss and analyze the application of the fraud triangle, the application of the fraud theory, explain the evidence and damages of the fraud, describe the disposal of the case and the lessons learned in relation to this ponzi scheme. The goal of this paper is to not only increase awareness of this type of scheme, but to also educate and prevent those who may be potential targets from...
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...‘’Earnings management, in exchange listed companies, is not fraud but a case of caveat emptor for investors ‘’ UP708386 ‘’Earnings management, in exchange listed companies, is not fraud but a case of caveat emptor for investors ‘’ UP708386 708386 Corporate governance, Financial Crime, Ethics & Controls for Finance Pathways (U234479) 708386 Corporate governance, Financial Crime, Ethics & Controls for Finance Pathways (U234479) ‘’Earnings management, in exchange listed companies, is not fraud but a case of caveat emptor for investors ‘’ This essay is intended to evaluate different views on a case whether the earnings management in exchange listed companies is consider as a fraud or caveat emptor for investors. One of the first mentions of earnings management has been given by Shipper where she described it as ‘’disclosure management, in the sense of purposeful intervention in the external financial reporting process, with the intent of obtaining some private gain.’’ (Shipper, 1989). In other words the managers are adjusting profits or losses on final accounts to mislead the stakeholders and to encourage them from investing. Earnings management become a problem for investors as it generates fake impression about companies success and misguide them into making wrong investment decisions which often leads to a making a loss. Another problem arises with incorrect financial reporting which is insincere for investors and resulting in making a capital market...
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...prison in the Satyam fraud case. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 5 crore on Ramalinga Raju, the Satyam Computer Services Ltd's founder and former chairman, and his brother B Rama Raju and Rs 20-25 lakh each on the remaining accused. HT presents a lowdown of the country's biggest-ever corporate accounting scandal . What is the Satyam scam about? It is about corporate governance and fraudulent auditing practices allegedly in connivance with auditors and chartered accountants. The company misrepresented its accounts both to its board, stock exchanges, regulators, investors and all other stakeholders. Is this an accounting fraud, a market manipulation/fraud or both? It is a fraud, which misled the market and other stakeholders by lying about the company’s financial health. Even basic facts such as revenues, operating profits, interest liabilities and cash balances were grossly inflated to show the company in good health. Who is to blame here? The promoters? The promoters are primary culprits, although it is almost impossible to misrepresent such facts without the connivance of the auditors and some executive board members. Independent directors, it seems, were kept in the dark about the actual books of accounts. What about the auditors? The role of external third party auditors, who were tasked to ensure that no financial bungling is undertaken to carry out promoters’ interest or hide facts, have also been brought to question. Anatomy of a fraud 1. Maintaining...
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...Anatomy of computer accounting frauds A. Seetharaman, M. Senthilvelmurugan and Rajan Periyanayagam Faculty of Management, Multimedia University, Malaysia Keywords Fraud, Corruption, Financial reporting, Whistleblowing, Internal control, Corporate governance Abstract This paper introduces fraud as asset misappropriations (85 per cent of cases), corruption and fraudulent statements. Symptoms include accounting anomalies, lack of internal control environment, lifestyle and behaviour. The most effective tools for fraud detection are internal audit review, specific investigation by management, and whistle-blowing. The paper details the fraud investigation process and the role of auditors as fraud examiners. The correlation of fraud perpetrators’ personality with the size of losses is examined. Personality is analysed into age, gender, position, educational background and collusion. A strong system of internal control is most effective in fraud prevention. Fraud prevention procedures, targeted goals and improvements to system weaknesses feature in the paper. Fraud impacts on accounting transactions in accounts receivable, receipts and disbursements, accounts payable, inventories and fixed assets, and financial reporting. The monetary impact resulting from fraud is analysed by the type of victim and the amount of loss. Internal control and good employment practices prevent fraud and mitigate loss. Computer accounting frauds 1055 Introduction Accounting fraud involves an intentional action...
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...as feedback and images, are available for question creation. Add Name Description Instructions Modify Creation Settings Chapter 2--Why People Commit Fraud Add Question Here Multiple Choice 0 points Modify Remove Question Which of the following is NOT a common rationalization of fraud perpetrators? Answer The organization owes me I'm only borrowing the money No one will get hurt I don’t deserve more. Add Question Here Multiple Choice 0 points Modify Remove Question Which of the following is NOT a primary control procedure to minimize the occurrence of fraud? Answer Dual custody Systems of authorization Internal audit department Documents and records Add Question Here Multiple Choice 0 points Modify Remove Question Each of the following is an example of an inadequate control environment EXCEPT: Answer The HR department failed to check an applicant's background and hired someone who had committed fraud in the past. A manager instructs employees not to share passwords, and then shares her passwords with others. A company does not establish codes of conduct and does not have training meetings to teach employees to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable behavior. The employees know who has responsibility for each business activity. Add Question Here Multiple Choice 0 points Modify Remove Question A fraud perpetrator uses the float time between banks to give the impression that he had money in his accounts. Which crime is he committing? Answer Floating Strip...
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...Prescriptive Approaches to Ethics at Enron Enron was a global energy firm that filed for bankruptcy protection in 2001. The firm’s senior managers had engaged in fraud for an extended period through a scheme in which partnerships owned by the managers could receive payment for goods and services never provided to Enron. In addition, the firm’s external auditing firm, Arthur Andersen, was complicit in the fraud by knowingly certifying false financial statements as accurate. Arthur Anderson participated in the fraud because the firm did not want to risk losing lucrative consulting contracts from Enron, which created a conflict of interest situation (Miller, 2004). The events leading to the collapse of Enron can be analyzed using the ethical frameworks suggested by consequentialist theory, deontological theory, and virtue ethics. Such an analysis can provide an explanation of the failure of Enron’s directors, mangers, and auditors to adhere to their ethical duties to the shareholders, employees, customers and suppliers of the firm. Consequentialist theory suggests that an act is ethically wrong if it results in consequences deemed wrong or harmful by the majority of people in a society (Hooker, 2002). The consequentialist theory requires assessing the actual consequences of the act, which includes both direct and indirect consequences. It also requires using some type of evaluative norm for determining whether the consequence is beneficial or harmful. The theory is prescriptive...
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...http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/FraudAmericanHistory.htm History of Fraud in America (Edited for use in MBA 590_ NCSU) Bob Jensen at Trinity University Colonial History Earliest "business" fraud in America centered around phony heath cures. Armstrong and Armstrong (1991) document many of the snake oil ploys that commenced soon after the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. Medical frauds ranging from deceptive medicines to spiritual cures to bloodletting expanded over time to modern day cancer miracle cures and Internet charlatanism. Since early America was largely agricultural, various land schemes accompanied the growing market for deceptive rural living and farming products. As the original 13 colonies were established land was owned by men who had been granted land from the English King. They in turn sold land to individuals and established common areas. Although many of the early dealings were legitimate, it did not take long for land swindles to commence. Swindlers were either buyers or sellers of land. Victims were often new immigrants and Indians who lived on the land before Colonial times. One of the best known frauds was the 1626 purchase of Manhattan Island for trinkets valued at 60 guilders (approximately $24). In this case the Carnarsie Indians from Brooklyn perpetrated the fraud since their land was not even connected to Manhattan Island. But in most cases it was the white men who cheated the Indians and each other. Land swindling grew rampant as America expanded...
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...on Establishing an Investment Counselling Agency that will Provide Free Counselling. Thesis Statement: Increasing number of fraud investment victims must be lessen in terms of having a government entity that will provide investment counselling. I. INTRODUCTION Have you ever thought of doubling your money in no time with no risk? Sounds good, but it corresponds on taking more risk, not zero risk. Many investors nowadays do not know the information needed before engaging to an activity like this. They are not aware of the basic terms that they need to know in order to choose a reliable company that will give them a high return of investment. Some are also not aware of the financial options available to them. Without this knowledge, investors fail to take advantage of potentially beneficial investment opportunities. In many cases, they become victims of scams and fraud cases. The practice of investment counselling has been used for almost a century. According to the Investment Advisor article, October 2006 issue, Arthur M. Clifford opened his own Los Angeles-based brokerage firm known as Clifford Swan Investment Counsel in 1911 after serving as an analyst and broker at a brokerage company in St. Louis. Four years later, Mrs. Robert Bliss, widow of the creator of Fletcher’s Castoria, asked him to review her assets. From then on he called himself an “Investment Counsellor and Financial Analyst” and he was one of the first to use the term “Investment Counsellor”. Clifford decided...
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...NEED TO ADD THE TITTLE • Research Paper Topic: • What are Auditors’ Responsibility Today to Detect Fraud; include how do these responsibilities fit into the professional practices of: external auditors, Certified Public Accountants in public practice and Internal Auditors and what has changed in these areas in recent years? For standards or articles use the following items as they relate to your paper to help organize your paper. Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS), especially all those statements relating to fraud, Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), Sarbanes-Oxley Act , etc. (SOX, Sarbox); International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing (Standards), European Confederation of Institutes of Internal Auditing (ECIIA), Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) , Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB)and its standards, and professional articles or books as primary sources. • • • • PLEASE HELP ME OUT EDITING THIS PAPER, SENTENCE STRUCTURE, ADD SENTENCES IF NEEDED I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO AN A PAPER AFTER THIS PROOF READING Thank you in advance please help • Auditors’ Responsibility to detect Fraud today Public companies are required by the SEC to prepare and issue financial statements that made a fair presentation of the companies’ performance. The SEC also stipulates that the companies whose shares...
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