Countering Fraud and Financial Crime

I was invited to a meeting on Fraud and Financial crime last week, but due to a number of issues could not make it.  I believe the detection of detecting fraud and how to counter it is an important one and is in particular a place where classic big data analytics can be used to address the problem. I have been involved in several such efforts long before there was the depth of data available today.   We have that data, but where do we start?

Addressing fraud is also an area where any sized company can get benefit.  The large company can employ expertise to address this problem and use the solutions attached to specific problems. Smaller companies often cannot make the same investments.  Its natural that they could leverage automated methods to discover and then address ninety percent of the typical fraud issues that arise.

The problems here are related to generalized compliance activity as it connects to regulations. It can be addressed by constructing a portfolio of most important and likely fraud issues, then taking them in the order of their possible risk and return. Also understanding the costs involved to detect and remedy each component.  An agility also of value to the smaller company.

Below are some documents that cover the meetings, and some comments I provide.   First the NYTimes article: IBM Launches New Software and Consulting Services to Help Organizations Tackle $3.5 Trillion Lost Annually to Fraud and Financial Crime

The meetings can be traced on Twitter with #counterfraud:  https://twitter.com/#Counterfraud

 Read the blog post: http://bit.ly/1eSljbP

 And the related video: http://bit.ly/1qQ0OEV

 Also a supporting infographic: http://bit.ly/1mg0UFg

And the supporting press release: http://ibm.co/Oy94dH  Excerpt:

" ...  IBM launched its “Smarter counter fraud” initiative, drawing on the expertise and innovation from more than 500 fraud consulting experts, 290 fraud-related research patents and $24 billion invested in IBM’s Big Data and Analytics software and services capabilities since 2005. The initiative extends IBM’s leadership in Big Data and Analytics and Cloud to help public and private organizations prevent, identify and investigate fraudulent activities.    ... " 

Continuing to follow the threads above.  Will have more comments in this thread as I digest the approaches mentioned.

This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet. I’ve been compensated to contribute to this program, but the opinions expressed in this post are my own and don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.  #MidsizeIBM