Corporates need robust risk mgmt to tackle tech frauds: Report

In view of increasing use of technology in their operations, corporates require a greater awareness about threats to business processes from new frauds, including cyber-crime, and must place a robust risk management system to tackle the menace, says a Deloitte report.

"Corporate India has work to do when it comes to tackling the menace of fraud as observed from all the responses collated," according to the report titled 'How prepared is Corporate India to tackle fraud?'

Additionally, with the increasing use of technology in business, the emergence of new frauds, including cyber-crime, requires organisations to be well-informed of the fraud vulnerabilities in their business processes, concurrently requiring them to build robust fraud risk management practices, the global consultancy major said in the report based on "an analysis of responses to Deloitte Forensic India's fraud risk score self-assessment tool."
 

As per the report, around 30 per cent of the SA (self- assessment) tool users highlighted that they did not have a whistle-blower hotline to detect fraud. Another 59 per cent indicated that they had whistle-blowing hotlines managed internally.

"SA tool users were divided on the use of data analytics to identify suspicious transactions and other red flags, with 48 per cent saying 'Yes' and 47 per cent saying 'No'," it said.

It further said that close to 60 per cent of the SA tool users indicated that they did not know whether their organisations had a formally documented fraud response plan.

To ascertain how companies were responding to recent legislative measures as well as dynamic business changes, Deloitte launched a web-based initiative in December 2014 - a self-assessment tool (SA tool) that organisations could use to determine their levels of preparedness to tackle fraud, misconduct, and noncompliance.

At the end of the assessment, users were given a Fraud Risk Score indicating their preparedness levels, alongside potential areas of improvement, which could be used by them for course correction.