A Joint Effort to Fight Corporate Fraud
CPAs stand as a solid line of defense in thwarting basic accounting fraud.

by Rick Telberg
for the Journal of Accountancy

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
-- IN THE BATTLE AGAINST CORPORATE FRAUD, the FBI's top financial crime investigators have taken their case to the CPA profession, seeking expanded cooperation between accountants and law enforcement officers.
-- THE AICPA AND THE FBI RESPONDED with a joint effort that was kicked off with a webcast featuring three FBI white-collar crime-fighter chiefs. Some 20,000 accountants watched nationwide.
-- THE PROJECT IS EXPECTED to blossom into a deep and wide-ranging partnership in which FBI agents and AICPA members will share and learn from each other the latest fraud-detection and deterrence techniques, auditing tricks and traps and the roles and responsibilities of CPAs and law enforcement officials.
-- AS PART OF THE FBI's STRATEGIC OVERVIEW of white-collar crime, the agency said CPAs are an essential part of winning the fight.
-- THE FBI WILL BE CALLING UPON CPAs in several ways as objective, third-party expert witnesses, as eyewitnesses and as candidates to join the agency. The FBI is actively recruiting CPAs as special agents and as analysts. Accountants already are a key part of the FBI team, with 1,300 accountants working as special agents. And the bureau will hire CPAs to fill 15% of new positions.
-- THE FBI SAYS CPAs STAND AS A SOLID LINE of defense in thwarting basic accounting fraud: The independence of CPAs, as well as their objectivity and professional skepticism, remains a crucial element in conducting effective audits.

Full story here.