Auditing Skills: Forensic Audit

Course Overview

This course will better equip internal auditors to fight white collar crime within their organisations. White collar crime is a growing worldwide phenomenon. The forensic audit is one of the latest means to facilitate the prevention, detection, investigation and successful prosecution of economic crime, in particular fraud. It is a specialist area and involves the integration of accounting, auditing and investigative skills.

The term 'forensic' means suitable for courts of justice or for public discussion and debate. Forensic auditing provides an investigation methodology and accounting analysis that is suitable to the court which will form the basis for discussion, debate and ultimately dispute resolution.

This course focuses on practical advice for internal auditors in the detection and investigation of white collar crime, in particular fraud. It provides an incisive analysis of how fraud occurs within an organisation and explains the latest techniques for fighting it.

Course Outline

FORENSIC AUDITING OVERVIEW

• Definitions, fundamentals and skills
• The role of audit -public perceptions compared with practical reality
• Reactive and proactive forensic audits
• Auditing and forensic auditing compared and contrasted
• Assessing quantum of loss
• Practical applications of forensic auditing expertise
• Fraud investigations
• Claims
• Expert witness and litigation support

WHITE COLLAR CRIME AND BUSINESS RISK

• The black economy - awareness and profiles
• Money laundering component and the proceeds of crime
• Governance and business risk overview
• Fraud theory (definitions, types and scale)
• Limitations of traditional audit techniques
• Strategic fraud prevention plan

DETECTION AND THE FORENSIC AUDIT TOOLKIT

• Deterrence, criminal psychology and the 'perception of detection'
• Use of audit to deter fraud -the appropriate questions
• Data mining tools, Benford's law and forensic application
• Key risk indicators
• Covert detective techniques

INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERT WITNESS TESTIMONY

• Use of publicly available information
• Use of documentary evidence
• Interviewing in a stressed environment -the five possible stages of a fraud interview and how best to handle each stage
• Assessing quantum of loss
• Reporting
• Practical case-management tips
• Dealing with lawyers and handling court situations