Jennifer Liebman, CFE
The data detective
The trove of leaked files from the Panama Papers and Paradise Papers exposed the secret offshore financial dealings of the global elite. Digging through those terabytes of data were hundreds of reporters led by Marina Walker Guevara. The Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist talks to Fraud Magazine about managing news media collaborations, data investigations and the urgency for stories that hold the powerful to account.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
5 most scandalous fraud cases of 2024
Fraudsters work year-round to perpetrate their schemes. Fraud Magazine also works year-round tracking the news for those schemes we believe will live in infamy and serve as cases for anti-fraud professionals to study for years to come. Here are the most scandalous frauds of 2024.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE, Crystal Zuzek, Anna Brahce
Great transformations
Fraud Magazine has always been in a state of transformation, from its start as a simple newsletter to a glossy magazine. Now, the magazine is making another big change as a digital-only publication.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
ACFE Foundation’s Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship awards students $56,000 in funds for 2022-2023 term
2022-2023 Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship winners.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
CFEs make significant advancements over past 10 years, 2022 Report to the Nations shows
The ACFE's 2022 survey of CFEs around the world and the occupational frauds they have detected and investigated
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Netflix and fraud and more
Netflix investors sue the streaming service for securities fraud; Spanish police crack a luxury car scam; Lincoln College shuts down in part because of a ransomware attack.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Kenneth Boey, CFE
As a child, Kenneth Boey read mystery novels and dreamed of fighting crime as a police officer. Now, Boey is a full-fledged fraud fighter, ensuring that his company, Etiqa Insurance, has strong controls in place to protect its systems from threats.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
M. Brian Reid, CFE
M. Brian Reid, CFE, says that in a parallel universe he might’ve been a nuclear physicist. But the CEO of Brison LLC applies the same passion he has for exploring the mysteries of the universe to examining the complexities of fraudsters and their schemes against his business clients.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Julie Aydlott, CFE
While conducting forensic and fraud examinations involving small organizations, Julie Aydlott saw just how devastating fraud could be for businesses with limited resources. Aydlott and a colleague founded Business Fraud Prevention, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to providing free training and resources to help small business owners implement internal controls and fight fraud.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Organizations race to adopt new anti-fraud technologies after slow start, ACFE/SAS technology report shows
The ACFE and SAS release their 2022 Anti-Fraud Technology Benchmarking Report; nominations open for the 2023-2024 Board of Regents
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Former Czech prime minister indicted; will stand trial for fraud and more
The former Czech prime minister is indicted for fraud; A Wisconsin dentist breaks his patients' teeth as part of an insurance fraud scheme; The U.S. Department of Justice appoints a chief prosecutor to handle pandemic fraud.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Two members join ACFE Board of Regents for 2023-2024
CFEs elected two new members to ACFE’s Board of Regents for the 2023-2024 term. The new members, Thomas A. Caulfield, CFE, and Natalie S. Lewis, CFE, replaced outgoing Regents Hannibal “Mike” Ware, CFE, and Alexandra Sagaro, CFE, whose terms ended in 2023. Caulfield and Lewis took their oaths of office during the board’s meeting in February.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Iryna Shkraba, CFE
Iryna Shkraba, CFE, has conducted anti-fraud investigations in almost a dozen European countries. She’s a governance, risk and compliance professional who’s worked for organizations such as EY as well as financial industry companies. And while Shkraba is currently based in Vienna, Austria, she takes every chance she can to visit her family and friends in her hometown of Kyiv, Ukraine.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Jeanette LeVie, CFE, looks back on 30 years with the ACFE
Jeanette LeVie, CFE, the ACFE's vice president and chief operating officer, celebrates her 30th anniversary at the leading anti-fraud training and education organization.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Three new members join the ACFE Board of Regents for 2022-2023 term
CFEs elect three new members to the ACFE's Board of Regents for the 2022-2023 term.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
No-fault car insurance scam, tax return fraud and more
Thirteen people indicted for a $100 million no-fault car insurance scam, sisters perpetrate a tax return fraud scam and Pakistan contemplates banning cryptocurrency.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Monica Meeks, CFE
Monica Meeks is a U.S. Army veteran and veteran fraud investigator who first honed her fraud-fighting skills as a service member probing credit card fraud committed by Army officials. Now the financial services investigator for the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, she shares lifelong lessons with students and fellow veterans, educating them about fraud and the value of earning the CFE credential.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Joseph R. Dervaes teaches fraud lessons and awards first scholarship named in his honor at PNW Chapter Annual Conference
ACFE Regent Emeritus Joseph R. Dervaes, CFE, gave his final presentation and awarded the Pacific Northwest Chapter’s scholarship, renamed in his honor, at the chapter’s first hybrid annual fraud conference and the latest edition of the Fraud Risk Management Guide helps fraud examiners keep apprised of the latest threats and the multiple ways they can tackle them.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE, Anna Brahce
Breaking records
Fraud examiners shattered Global Fraud Conference attendance records in Seattle, Washington, cementing ACFE’s hybrid virtual and in-person annual conference as a can’t-miss event. And keynote speakers shared their stories of investigating fraud and corruption and revealing the truth.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
A roadmap for managing ESG risks
Fraud examiners don’t need cutting-edge techniques to fight fraud in the burgeoning area of environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives. They can simply build on existing tools and guides to mitigate those risks, according to the latest report from the ACFE and Grant Thornton LLP, "Managing Fraud Risks in an Evolving ESG Environment."
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Inorganic materials and more
An organic farmer is busted for selling non-organic grains; Ukrainian law enforcement arrest cybercriminals for a phishing scheme against Ukrainian citizens; Salt Lake City 'Real Housewife' Jen Shah and and rapper Nuke Bizzle plead guilty to fraud schemes.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Ricky D. Sluder, CFE
Ricky D. Sluder, CFE, first discovered a knack for solving fraud cases when he was a detective in Dallas County, Texas. Now the head of healthcare value engineering for Shift Technology is using his investigative know-how to help other investigators better prevent and detect fraud.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Culture, COVID and change
The world is changing quickly, and fraud fighters must adapt to the times. The ACFE Board of Regents relate their experiences in fighting fraud, waste and abuse, and the new battle opening up on the technological front.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE, Paul Kilby, CFE
The home front
While fraud examiners are hard at work keeping their organizations safe from scammers and other criminals, they must also think about how their loved ones can fall victim to fraudsters’ wily ways. Here we interview CFEs about how they keep family and friends safe.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Barry Tong, CFE
Barry Tong, CFE, wanted to be an accountant ever since he was in secondary school, but it wasn’t until he joined a Big Four firm’s insolvency and restructuring department that he became interested in fighting fraud. Now, Tong spearheads fraud investigations as Grant Thornton China’s national leader of Forensic and Investigation Services (FIS) based in Hong Kong.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Fraudster gets 30-year prison sentence, Social Security fraud and more
A man gets a 30-year prison sentence for a Ponzi scheme; a woman is accused of Social Security fraud after her husband's death; and alleged members of the cybercriminal group, REvil, are arrested.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
5 most scandalous fraud cases of 2021
Each year always brings a fresh array of fraud-related scandals, and 2021 was no different. The massive theft of COVID-relief funds continued to play out, but other notable schemes hit the headlines. Here we list the most scandalous of the lot.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Michael Pocalyko, CFE
Michael Pocalyko found his passion for fighting fraud when a troubled public company asked him to join its board as a fixer. Since then, the CEO of SI — a Washington D.C.-based intelligence and cyber-sector professional services company — has investigated numerous cases involving governments, corporations, executive misconduct and board-level improprieties. Pocalyko warns that fraudsters are more sophisticated than ever before and to anticipate fraudsters’ creativity.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
CFEs have the edge in pay, high work satisfaction, 2022 Compensation Guide shows
Certified Fraud Examiners (CFEs) earn 17% more than their non-certified counterparts, and 62% report being happy on the job. These are just a few of the insights from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiner’s (ACFE) 2022 Compensation Guide for Anti-Fraud Professionals, which also revealed a slow trend toward gender diversity in the anti-fraud profession and changing workplace habits since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Kathryn Wilson, CFE
Kathryn Wilson, CFE, learned in high school that accounting encompasses so much more than crunching numbers — it’s also about following the money. And accounting isn’t just a job for Wilson, who conducts risk assessments and devises ways to prevent fraud as a senior manager in CohnReznick’s government and public-sector group; it’s also a family affair with her two brothers and late grandfather in the profession.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
5 most scandalous fraud cases of 2022
It’s hard to believe, but it’s been almost three years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and fraud fighters are still grappling with the fallout of frauds tied to government-relief funds. Yet, despite the massive scale of pandemic frauds and the staggering loss of money, governments made some progress after enacting task forces to investigate COVID-related frauds and recover stolen funds. And while some of the most scandalous frauds of 2022 were connected to the pandemic, it wasn’t all COVID all the time. Indeed, there were plenty of other frauds we believe will live on in infamy and serve as essential case studies for fraud examiners in the years to come. (See “Justice Department Announces COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force Teams,” U.S. DOJ press release, Sept. 14, 2022 and “Secret Service recovers $286 million in stolen COVID relief funds,” by Julia Ainsley and Sarah Fitzpatrick, NBC News, Aug. 26, 2022.)
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Finding ‘Fat Leonard’ and more
Authorities apprehend Leonard Francis, who recently escaped house arrest after involvement in Naval corruption case; the Federal Trade Commission sues Roomster Corp. for using false apartment listings and fake reviews; Police in China arrest criminal gang responsible for major banking scandal
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE, Anna Brahce
Gogi Overhoff, CFE
Long before she became a fraud examiner, Gogi Overhoff, CFE, had her sights set on becoming an actress. But instead of a life on stage, she shines a spotlight on licensed accountants accused of defrauding their clients in her role as an investigator for the California Board of Accountancy.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Crushing fraud in the U.K.
Fraud now accounts for more than 40% of all crime in the United Kingdom. Here we explore what’s behind this proliferation of fraud in England and Wales and what anti-fraud experts say the government must do to crush it.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Lourdes C. Miranda, CFE
Throughout her career investigating financial crimes — first in the CIA and FBI and now in the private sector — Lourdes Miranda found that understanding human behavior is instrumental to cracking cases. She now urges fellow CFEs to balance technology with human intelligence in their investigations and learn everything they can about cryptocurrency and blockchain.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Flexing instead of curtsying
Former CIA Chief of Disguise Jonna Mendez talks about concealing spies’ true identities as they ply their trade, rising through the ranks as a woman in a male-dominated field, and the important differences between fraud fighters and undercover agents.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Cracking the center
According to the United Nations, an estimated 200,000 people have been trafficked into cyber scam centers where they’re forced to commit fraud schemes, causing billions of dollars in losses worldwide. Fraud Magazine talks to experts fighting on the frontlines against forced criminality about what it will take to disrupt these cyber scam operations and what fraud examiners can do to help.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
5 most scandalous fraud cases of 2023
We’d just filed our Most Scandalous Frauds story of 2022 when news of the implosion of multibillion-dollar crypto exchange FTX broke. It might’ve been a little too late for us to add what would become the biggest fraud scandal since Theranos to the 2022 list, but the FTX story didn’t disappear, and we had FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial and eventual guilty verdict to keep us riveted. Of course, FTX wasn’t the only high-profile case that shocked us; there were many others that had a big impact on the anti-fraud profession. Here are the five fraud cases we found most scandalous in 2023.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Rasha Kassem, Ph.D., CFE
As a senior academic and researcher, Rasha Kassem seeks to mitigate fraud risks, improve methods of fighting fraud, and better understand why fraud criminals do what they do. She says that investigating fraud isn’t enough to stop it and urges fraud examiners to innovate and explore new techniques for prevention.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
The irrevocable trust
In 2023, Christopher Linscott, CFE, CPA, CIRA, arranged a donation of $250,000 to the ACFE Foundation — the single largest donation to the foundation ever. Here’s the story of how a Ponzi scheme that bilked thousands of military veterans and retirees became the impetus for that donation.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE, Mandy Moody, CFE, Jala Attia, CFE
Defiant together
Jennifer Griffith, CFE, and Sarah Carver, CFE, spent years informing their superiors in the U.S. Social Security Administration office where they worked about an operation between a lawyer and an administrative law judge to fraudulently approve thousands of disability claims. But instead of rewarding them for uncovering a massive fraud, their bosses retaliated against them. Carver and Griffith talk to Fraud Magazine about their journey as whistleblowers and their courage to fight for the truth even when the odds were stacked against them.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
The perilous job of telling the truth
In 2022, investigative journalist Jeff German had just begun picking at the threads of a story about a Ponzi scheme that targeted members of the Mormon church. But he was murdered before he got the chance to write it. After his death, another reporter, Lizzie Johnson, took up his mantle and finished the story for him. Fraud Magazine recounts Johnson’s and German’s investigation, and talks to Johnson about honoring German’s legacy and the perils that journalists can face on the job.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Stand by for guidance
The failure to prevent fraud offense, a key provision of the U.K.’s 2023 Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, is expected to go into force later this year or 2025. The offense, part of the government’s overall strategy to fight financial crime, is meant to encourage corporate accountability for fraud. In this article, anti-fraud professionals assess the new law and consider what organizations might do to prepare as they await government guidance on “reasonable procedures” rules to prevent fraud.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Everything is a priority in the Southern District of New York
Fraud Magazine examines how U.S. Attorney Damian Williams is leading the fight against financial fraud and public corruption from one of the most influential federal prosecutorial offices in the United States.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
CFE Exam moves to Prometric testing platform and the ACFE COVID-19 Benchmarking Report
CFE Exam moves to Prometric testing platform and the ACFE COVID-19 Benchmarking Report
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Counterfeit coupons, fake EU COVID-19 certificates and more
Counterfeit coupons, fake EU COVID-19 certificates and more
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Investigating the investigators, no profit in tragedy for identity thieves and more
Investigating the investigators, no profit in tragedy for identity thieves and more
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
Timothy Pikas, CFE
Timothy Pikas has spent his career fighting fraud on behalf of various U.S. governmental agencies, including the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of the Interior. Along the way, the 2021 Certified Fraud Examiner of the Year learned that a solid fraud case takes time to build, and he counsels fellow CFEs to keep the faith and remain patient when conducting their own fraud examinations.
Written By: Jennifer Liebman, CFE
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