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Fraud Awareness Week Casts Spotlight on White Collar Crime

Lakeland College Accounting Students Join Ranks of Supporters for Nov. 11-17 Awareness Movement

Lakeland College's accounting program will participate in International Fraud Awareness Week, Nov. 11-17, 2012, as an official supporter to promote anti-fraud awareness and education.

The goal of the week is to bring awareness to business fraud and teach lessons that businesses and individuals can use to prevent fraud. Organizations around the world lose an estimated 5 percent of their annual revenues to fraud, according to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).

As an official supporter of Fraud Week, Lakeland's accounting program joins hundreds of organizations who have partnered with the ACFE, the world's largest anti-fraud organization and premier provider of anti-fraud training and education, in a commitment to proactively fight fraud and help safeguard business and investments from this growing problem.

During Fraud Week, Lakeland students will engage in various activities, including hosting fraud awareness events and hearing a presentation by Margaret F. Suralik, CPA, ASA, president of Suralik LLC. Suralik has an extensive background in forensic accounting.

Lakeland students will also be conducting surveys to assess the levels of fraud awareness within the college and surrounding community. Articles and other information about fraud prevention will be posted at http://lakeland.edu/fraudblog.

ACFE President and CEO James D. Ratley, CFE, said that the support of organizations around the world helps make Fraud Week an effective tool in raising anti-fraud awareness.

"While fraud prevention and detection is a year-round endeavor, International Fraud Awareness Week provides a great opportunity to spotlight this serious problem and stress the importance of anti-fraud training and education," Ratley said. "Businesses and organizations who are involved in this campaign show an understanding that spreading awareness is key in combating the worldwide fraud threat.

In its "2012 Report to the Nations on Occupational Fraud & Abuse," the ACFE found that:

• Fraud schemes are extremely costly. The median loss caused by the occupational fraud cases in the ACFE study was $140,000. More than one-fifth of the frauds involved losses of at least $1 million.
• Schemes can continue for months or even years before they are detected. The frauds in the study lasted a median of 18 months before being caught.
• Occupational fraud is a global problem. Though some findings differ slightly from region to region, most of the trends in fraud schemes, perpetrator characteristics and anti-fraud controls are similar regardless of where the fraud occurred.
• Small businesses are especially vulnerable to occupational fraud. These organizations are typically lacking in anti-fraud controls compared to their larger counterparts, which makes them particularly vulnerable to fraud.
• Tips are key in detecting fraud. Occupational frauds are much more likely to be detected by tip than by any other means. This finding reinforces the need for promoting awareness to foster an informed workforce.

For more information about increasing awareness and reducing the risk of fraud during International Fraud Awareness Week, visit www.FraudWeek.com.

The "2012 Report to the Nations" is available for download online at the ACFE's website: ACFE.com/RTTN.

About the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
The ACFE is the world's largest anti-fraud organization and premier provider of anti-fraud training and education. Together with nearly 65,000 members in over 150 countries, the ACFE is reducing the incidence of fraud and providing the training and resources to fight fraud more effectively. For more information about the ACFE, visit www.ACFE.com.

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