5 Careers in the Anti-Fraud Industry

careers in anti fraud industry

Anti-Fraud Industry Careers

  • Loss Prevention Agent
  • Fraud and Abuse Investigator
  • Forensic Accountant
  • Auditor
  • Private Investigator

The anti-fraud industry is a great place for those with a forensic accounting degree, a criminal justice degree, and many other specialties and backgrounds as well. So, what types of careers can be found in this expansive and important industry? Here are five examples that show off a good cross-section of what this field is all about.

Loss Prevention Agent

Loss prevention is a term used in many organizations which refers to the concept of assuring that criminal/fraudulent activity is prevented, in some way, from causing losses. Most forms of “losses” in this area of an organization’s operations deal with matters of theft of physical property and rendered services. The loss prevention agent is then the primary employee involved with this effort. Examples of their typical duties include monitoring of premises, maintenance of monitoring equipment, report creation, cooperation with management in various means, and various other investigative activities.

Fraud and Abuse Investigator

Fraud and abuse investigators work in many of the same ways as loss prevention agents, but these particular workers tend to work in more corporate-crime kinds of settings, investigating more white-collar crime issues, as opposed to sales and service settings in which outside criminality comes in from the outside. These professionals primarily tend to investigate crimes from within but can also be led to other surprising places via their investigations and even simple observations. In addition, those working in this role will likely interact and cooperate with many of those working in the other anti-fraud roles mentioned in this piece.

Forensic Accountant

Forensic accountants are the sleuths of the digital and paper trails. These professionals, typically well-educated in forensic accountancy specifically, dig into the deep and often hidden clues found in company records and elsewhere in order to determine a certain truth. These specialists may be hired from within a company, from an outside source, or even work directly in official law enforcement. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is one such agency well-known for its forensic accountants and associated fraud services.

Auditor

Auditors also act as a sort of forensic accountant but typically with less authority and ability in “forensic” approaches to uncovering histories, facts, and figures. There are generally two types of auditors: internal and external. Internal auditors are employed internally by a company in order to review records and history therein. Those auditors who conversely work externally are hired and operated from an outside entity of some sort to look into some other organization’s records and history. Regardless of their employer, all auditors act as official reviewers of a wide array of company inner-workings.

Private Investigator

Finally, private investigators, also known as PIs or private detectives, act as general investigators of a rather large scope. Whether on the ground or in the research room, these professionals act much like typical police detectives but without the wide-ranging authority of police-only access and investigative methods and tools. Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Private detectives and investigators search for information about legal, financial, and personal matters. They offer many services, such as verifying people’s backgrounds and statements, finding missing persons, and investigating computer crimes.”

Concluding Thoughts

The criminal element can, unfortunately, find its way into nearly any aspect of business and industry. Those working in the anti-fraud field work to directly combat this issue each and every day. The above-mentioned careers in the anti-fraud industry represent just a handful of the many to be found for those with that forensic accounting degree, criminal justice degree, or any other relevant background to contribute to the cause.

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