Forensic accountants are best qualified to unearth the “hows and whys” of occupational fraud. But it’s up to employers to know when it’s time to call for professional help in the first place. The signs of fraud can be easy to miss, but they’re usually there. Something doesn’t belong Dishonest employees may use anything from fictitious vendors to false invoices to cover up theft. To ferret out potential fraud, look for such signs as: Duplicate payments, Out-of-sequence entries, Entries by employees who don’t usually make them, Unusual inventory adjustments, Accounts that don’t properly balance, and Transactions for amounts that appear too large or too small, or transactions that occur too often or too rarely. An increase in the number of complaints your company receives is another warning sign....
