From processes to anti-fraud victories

Tom Shaw, CFE, CAMS, a seasoned pro, knows that fraud examiners only see victories when they've diligently planned for every possible fraud quirk. Here's help for incorporating metrics-driven processes into your anti-fraud efforts.

All the road signs said, "Trouble Ahead." The Financial Crimes Investigation Team of USAA — a financial services company for U.S. military and their families — had identified an upward trend in identity fraud matters via its "metric dashboards." Tom Shaw, CFE, CAMS, vice president of enterprise financial crimes management, and his team initiated a "deep dive" (an in-depth study) and learned that an organized fraud ring "was establishing new checking accounts online in rapid succession" on USAA's website, he says. USAA was exposed to an otherwise unknown vulnerability.

Fraudsters were quickly establishing bank accounts using stolen and fake identities and funding them with prepaid cards. The Financial Crimes Investigation Team determined that the fraudsters had designed an automated program script to systematically open accounts online.