Fraud Detection and Prevention Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Internal Auditors, Finance Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 7 Nov 2026 Course code SD-FFC-003

Before you join: Participants should understand basic business processes such as purchasing, payments, payroll, expenses, customer transactions or financial reporting.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Fraud losses rarely arise from a single failed control. They emerge where incentives, access, weak supervision, data gaps and management override meet. Finance, procurement, operations and customer-facing teams need to recognise fraud schemes early, investigate concerns fairly and strengthen controls without disrupting legitimate business activity. This course addresses occupational fraud, payment fraud, procurement fraud, customer fraud and reporting-related misconduct using methods relevant to regulated and high-value transaction environments.

Participants learn to assess fraud risk, identify control weaknesses, analyse transaction data, investigate allegations and report findings to appropriate decision-makers. The course covers the ACFE Fraud Tree, fraud risk assessment, segregation of duties, vendor and payroll controls, exception testing, Benford's Law, link analysis, whistleblowing arrangements, evidence handling and post-incident remediation. Participants build the judgement to distinguish a control exception from a credible fraud indicator, prioritise cases by exposure and preserve evidence for internal, disciplinary, civil or regulatory action.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with realistic cases drawn from procurement, accounts payable, payroll, retail payments and customer onboarding. Participants review documents, assess alerts, test control designs, plan investigations and discuss reporting decisions in facilitated groups. Each participant leaves with a practical fraud risk assessment pack, investigation planning materials, control-testing checklists and a 90-day fraud prevention action plan that can be adapted to their own function.

The course is suited to professionals who already work with financial processes, controls, risk, compliance, audit, investigations or operational oversight and need a structured approach to fraud detection and prevention.

What you will be able to do

  • Conduct a fraud risk assessment using likelihood, impact, velocity and detectability criteria
  • Classify occupational and external fraud schemes using the ACFE Fraud Tree
  • Design preventive, detective and corrective controls for high-risk financial processes
  • Test transaction data using exception rules, Benford's Law and link analysis
  • Investigate fraud allegations using an evidence matrix, case plan and chain-of-custody log
  • Evaluate vendor, payroll, expense and payment controls for common fraud vulnerabilities
  • Prepare clear fraud case reports and escalation briefings for management and audit committees
  • Develop a 90-day fraud prevention action plan with priorities, owners and milestones

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Recognise fraud indicators before losses become material
  • Assess suspicious transactions using documented analytical methods
  • Plan defensible investigations without contaminating evidence
  • Challenge weak controls with specific remediation recommendations
  • Report fraud concerns clearly to senior decision-makers

For your organisation

  • Earlier identification of payment, procurement, payroll and expense fraud
  • Better targeted fraud controls based on documented risk assessments
  • More consistent triage and escalation of allegations and alerts
  • Stronger evidence records for disciplinary, recovery and regulatory decisions
  • Actionable post-incident improvements that reduce repeat fraud opportunities

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can classify major fraud schemes and assign clear responsibilities for prevention, detection and investigation.

  • Fraud triangle, fraud diamond and fraud scale risk drivers
  • ACFE Fraud Tree categories: asset misappropriation, corruption and financial statement fraud
  • Distinguishing fraud, error, misconduct, money laundering and control failures
  • Management override patterns and pressure indicators behind material misstatement
  • Mapping fraud exposures through process walkthroughs and stakeholder interviews
  • Three lines model responsibilities for prevention, detection and investigation

Participants can create a prioritised fraud risk register linked to processes, schemes, controls and owners.

  • Fraud risk assessment scoped by process, product, channel and geography
  • Documenting inherent risk, control strength, residual risk and owners
  • Likelihood-impact scoring calibrated with financial, regulatory and reputational consequences
  • Scenario-based risk statements linking perpetrators, schemes, targets and control gaps
  • Heat maps prioritised using velocity, detectability and exposure values
  • Fraud risk register fields, escalation thresholds and review cadence

Participants can design and test controls that prevent, detect and correct fraud risks.

  • COSO principles translated into preventive, detective and corrective fraud controls
  • Segregation-of-duties matrices identifying incompatible initiation, approval, posting and reconciliation roles
  • Approval limits, dual authorisation and maker-checker controls for high-risk transactions
  • Designing control evidence that supports testing, investigation and audit
  • Control self-assessments tested against policy exceptions and actual workflows
  • Remediation plans assigning actions, deadlines, owners and validation tests

Participants can apply practical data-analysis methods to identify, prioritise and review fraud alerts.

  • Fraud data requirements: transaction fields, master data, logs and cases
  • Data quality checks for completeness, duplicates, timeliness and identifier integrity
  • Benford's Law applied cautiously to naturally occurring transaction populations
  • Exception rules flagging duplicate payments, split invoices and round-dollar amounts
  • Link analysis connecting employees, suppliers, bank accounts and addresses
  • Alert thresholds tuned through false-positive and false-negative review
  • Case queues triaged by loss exposure, urgency and evidential value

Participants can identify fraud vulnerabilities and control responses in core expenditure processes.

  • Accounts payable fraud schemes: fictitious vendors, duplicate invoices and diversion
  • Vendor master-file controls over onboarding, amendments and bank-account changes
  • Three-way matching exceptions analysed for collusion and override indicators
  • Procurement red flags: bid rotation, conflicts, kickbacks and specification tailoring
  • Expense claim testing for duplicates, altered receipts and policy evasion
  • Payroll fraud indicators: ghost employees, overtime anomalies and unauthorised amendments

Participants can recognise common external fraud patterns and improve fraud response across customer channels.

  • Payment fraud typologies: authorised push payment, card-not-present and account takeover
  • Know-your-customer data used to identify impersonation and mule-account signals
  • Transaction monitoring scenarios for velocity, device, geography and beneficiary changes
  • Behavioural indicators separating genuine customer activity from social-engineering losses
  • Chargeback, refund and friendly-fraud patterns within customer transaction data
  • Escalation routes between fraud operations, cybersecurity, compliance and customer service

Participants can plan a proportionate fraud investigation and maintain defensible evidence records.

  • Allegation intake criteria, case classification and conflict-of-interest safeguards
  • Investigation plans defining hypotheses, scope, evidence sources and decision points
  • Preserving digital evidence through chain-of-custody logs and access restrictions
  • Interview sequencing, PEACE model questioning and contemporaneous note-taking
  • Evidence matrices connecting allegations, facts, sources, reliability and corroboration
  • Case reports separating findings, limitations, conclusions and recommended actions
  • Legal counsel, HR and compliance roles during sensitive investigations

Participants can manage fraud reports through confidential intake, escalation and case governance procedures.

  • Whistleblowing channels designed for confidentiality, accessibility, anonymity and non-retaliation
  • Intake protocols assessing immediate safety, evidence preservation and reporting obligations
  • Case management records supporting audit trails, privacy and restricted access
  • Material fraud escalation to boards, audit committees and senior management
  • Regulatory reporting triggers assessed with legal counsel and compliance teams
  • Communication plans protecting due process, reputation and affected customers

Participants can contain fraud losses, assess recovery options and convert findings into control improvements.

  • Containment actions stopping ongoing losses without compromising evidence or notifications
  • Root cause analysis using five whys and control failure mapping
  • Loss quantification separating direct loss, recovery costs and consequential exposure
  • Recovery options: reversals, civil claims, insurance and law-enforcement referrals
  • Disciplinary decisions aligned with evidence, policy, employment law and consistency
  • Post-incident reviews converting findings into measurable control improvements

Participants can monitor fraud performance and create a practical implementation plan for their organisation.

  • Fraud governance charters defining accountability, authority, independence and reporting lines
  • Key fraud indicators measuring alerts, conversion, losses, recoveries and ageing
  • Dashboard design distinguishing operational metrics from board-level risk indicators
  • Testing detection rules against known cases and emerging typologies
  • Annual fraud control plans aligned to assessed risks and resources
  • Personal 90-day implementation plan with priorities, sponsors and milestones

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Fraud risk assessment template
  2. Fraud risk register
  3. Segregation-of-duties matrix
  4. Fraud analytics rule library
  5. Investigation plan and evidence matrix
  6. 90-day fraud prevention action plan

Who should attend

  • Internal Auditors — need to identify fraud risks and test anti-fraud controls
  • Finance Managers — oversee payment, payroll, expense and reporting processes
  • Risk and Compliance Officers — assess fraud exposure and maintain escalation arrangements
  • Fraud Investigators — require structured case planning, evidence and reporting methods
  • Procurement Managers — manage supplier integrity, tender risks and vendor controls
  • Operational Managers — own frontline controls and respond to suspected misconduct

Skills and tools covered

Fraud risk assessmentControl design testingTransaction data analysisFraud investigation planningEvidence handlingCase reporting

Tools and standards

ACFE Fraud Tree, COSO Internal Control—Integrated Framework, Benford's Law, PEACE interview model

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short briefings to introduce fraud methods, controls and investigation principles, followed by facilitated case work. Participants assess fraud scenarios, review transaction patterns, identify red flags, test control designs and make escalation decisions. Group exercises use realistic materials such as invoices, vendor records, expense claims, payroll extracts and allegation reports. A fraud investigation simulation develops evidence-handling and interview-planning judgement. Individual application planning converts course learning into actions for participants' own processes and control responsibilities.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should understand basic business processes such as purchasing, payments, payroll, expenses, customer transactions or financial reporting. Experience in finance, audit, risk, compliance, procurement, operations or investigations is helpful. Participants should be comfortable reading transaction reports, policies and simple process diagrams. Prior fraud investigation experience is not required, and the course does not assume legal training, accounting qualifications, forensic software expertise or advanced statistical knowledge. It is not designed as an introductory course in bookkeeping or general financial management.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants need familiarity with basic financial or operational processes, such as purchasing, payments, payroll, expenses or customer transactions. Prior investigation experience, legal training and advanced data-analysis skills are not required.

Participants should bring examples of their own fraud concerns, control questions or process risks where organisational policy permits. No specialist software is required; course materials and case documents are provided.

It is designed for internal audit, finance, risk, compliance, procurement, operations and investigation professionals with responsibility for financial controls or fraud response. Managers who oversee high-risk processes will also benefit.

This course focuses on detecting and preventing fraud within business processes, transactions, employee conduct and customer activity. It addresses areas that connect with AML and cybersecurity, but does not teach sanctions screening, suspicious activity reporting requirements or technical security administration.

Participants can use the fraud risk assessment template, control-testing checklist and analytics rules to review a selected process. The 90-day action plan helps convert findings into assigned actions, milestones and follow-up reviews.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. The five days progress from fraud typologies and risk assessment through controls, data analysis, investigations, reporting, recovery and implementation planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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