In general life, Fraud can be explained as any activity which is a wrongful deception and in the end, results in any financial or personal gain to the person. Such activity can bring devastating results to a business. In the business world, fraud can be defined as a planned activity that is performed with the aim of robbing or depriving the other entity of property or money.

A business can conduct fraud without the management knowing about it. This can create huge losses and improper use of resources and can lead to the liquidation of a company. This is why it is required that every business requires a Fraud Investigation Audit Service. A Forensic Examiner will examine all the documents and reports of the company with the aim of finding if any fraudulent activity is taking place in the business.

Proper Accounting and Bookkeeping will help a business to prevent such fraudulent activities from happening. Accounting and Bookkeeping will form the first line of defence in such cases. But for different scenarios, there are different methods for detecting if any fraudulent activity is conducted in the company or not. Some more frequently used methods of fraud detection are:

1. Brainstorming

This is one of the most common and frequently used methods of detecting fraud in a business. During the initiation of any fraud audit, a brainstorming session is done. During the brainstorming session, the audit team lists all the ways by which the management can find and tackle fraudulent activities. As brainstorming is an initial session, it is not necessary that the audit team has to state only viable options. Anything which comes to the mind should be jotted down.

2. Examination of Journal Entries

All the transactions of the company are recorded as a journal entry. The Fraud Investigator will have to examine all the journal entries of the business to find any discrepancy. Any manipulation in the journal entries of the company will mean that there has been some tampering in the business.

3. Historical Transactions of the Company

The previous transactions of a company can provide huge information regarding the fraud situation in the company. After watching the previous transactions of the company, the audit team can get a sense as to what is the estimated amount which the company usually spends. If there is a huge deviation from this amount, then the company can be considered a victim of fraud.

4. Reviewing

Conducting the reviews of the business at specific periods will help the management to catch hold of fraudulent activities in the business. Once any such activity is caught, the management can take preventive steps to ensure that such activities do not happen in the future.

• • • Helps to identify any internal frauds
    • Strengthens the organization’s control mechanism
    • Saves a company from long-term damage and helps to retain the reputation of the organization
    • Acts as the factual information that can be used as a document in a court of law

There is a huge requirement for a professional Fraud Examiner, and this requirement is constantly increasing. Before availing of the fraud Examination Audit services, there are certain things that have to be kept in mind. These are:

1. The individual or team must have knowledge of the finances and how all the books of accounts are maintained.
2. They should have experience about how companies can manipulate the financial books and should also be inquisitive and search for new ways of finding out inconsistencies in the business.
3. The reviews of the particular auditor or examiner should be checked before availing the services of that person.

The main difference lies in the purpose of the audit. A financial audit is done to confirm the validity of the financial records, while an investigation audit relates directly to an issue defined by the client.

Fidelity insurance is a type of business insurance that protects the insured against loss of property or money resulting from fraudulent acts committed by an employee. GSPU Fraud Investigation Audit services are:

• Evaluating the suspected financial and operational reports of the organization.
• Helping the organization in fraud prevention by conducting an investigative review.
• Preparing a fraud investigation report based on investigation reviews
• Recommendation of relative action to prevent frauds in the future

GSPU is a financial consultant, offering a wide range of services including accounting, auditing, software consultancy, and management. At GSPU, we help our clients in the analysis of company controls, processes and procedures to identify the suspected fraud. We also prepare a detailed fraud investigation report within a few days of time period. We have been providing the best audit & assurance services

For any fraud investigation audit services in OMAN, contact us – we’d be glad to assist.