As I write this, I’m still riding high from meeting so many wonderful people at the 35th Annual Global Fraud Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, in June. We topped last year’s record of over 5,500 conference attendees in Seattle,
Washington, with 2,500 in-person attendees and 3,300 others tuning in virtually to Las Vegas from all over the world.
Since returning home, I’ve been thinking about how there’s nothing like a live event to get you energized about your job. I know not everyone can attend the annual ACFE Global Fraud Conferences, but you don’t need to traverse far and wide to
discover new ideas and renew your strength as a fraud fighter; seek out your anti-fraud compatriots at home. Local ACFE chapters supply a wealth of events and educational opportunities to bolster your expertise.
A standout moment for me at the conference was Jennifer Griffith, CFE, and Sarah Carver, CFE, who shared their story of perseverance against all odds as they reported fraud at the U.S. Social Security Administration field office where they worked. I was
thrilled to present them with the Cliff Robertson Sentinel Award, which is bestowed annually to people relentless in their pursuit to publicly disclose wrongdoing despite suffering personal and professional consequences. Fraud Magazine profiled
their heroic efforts in the March/April 2024 issue. (See “Defiant together,” by Jennifer Liebman, CFE.)
Talking to Carver and Griffith reminded me of how hard it can be for whistleblowers. As we see in Occupational Fraud 2024: A Report to the Nations, tips are the most common method of discovering
fraud. Having a good reporting system is essential for people to come forward with information about wrongdoing. Carver’s and Griffith’s experiences as whistleblowers demonstrate the importance of a strong whistleblower program that protects reporters
from all forms of retaliation.
At our conferences, and all others I attend, the hot topic is artificial intelligence (AI). Many people have asked me this question: “Has everyone mastered AI but me?” My answer to that is “No.” AI isn’t a magic bullet — we’re all still learning how it
works and how we can use it to fight fraud. This is what I’ve concluded based on my many conversations with attendees in Las Vegas:
- AI won’t find fraud, but it’ll help you analyze data on a large scale for a greater chance of uncovering potentially fraudulent transactions.
- AI won’t replace fraud examiners. AI is only as intelligent as the information it receives from humans. It doesn’t know the difference between a good transaction and a possible fraudulent one unless you train it well. It’s still up to fraud examiners
to understand the schemes and know the red flags. And of course, we’ll still need fraud examiners to review those transactions flagged by the AI system.
AI requires a great deal of effort to secure and properly train to ensure that it cleanses and normalizes the data you feed it. It’s an exciting new technology, but don’t think that you’ve missed the boat on it. The boats are still being built and only
a few have been launched to test the waters; there’s still plenty of time to set sail as the experts develop and test sturdier and hardier AI vessels.
John D. Gill, J.D., CFE, is president of the ACFE. Contact him at President@ACFE.com.