Hall of Fame Award Winner Dr. Joseph T. Wells, ACFE Founder and Chairman

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Hall of Fame Award Winner Dr. Joseph T. Wells, ACFE Founder and Chairman

“The moral here is that we get to where we are by doing all we can. Not in a straight line and not by finishing exactly where we started ... I had a flair for fraud examination and that’s where I found my calling. Not only was the work interesting and challenging, but I was doing something to help make the world a better place,” said Dr. Joseph T. Wells, CFE, CPA, ACFE founder and Chairman, during the Monday Opening Session as he accepted the ACFE Hall of Fame Award.

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Heard in the Halls: Continue the Path

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Heard in the Halls: Continue the Path

“I thought the general session was really encouraging and informative. Especially because as a fraud professional you feel alone sometimes. And being in that session reminded me that I was amongst my peers, and what I’m doing is right and sometimes we might not get the right outcome, but just to continue the path.” – Chrisoula Koutoulas, CFE, Director of Compliance, Kaiser Permanente

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Work with Human Behavior to Avoid Breaches and Cybercrime, Says Cybersecurity Expert

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Work with Human Behavior to Avoid Breaches and Cybercrime, Says Cybersecurity Expert

Organizations continue to operate under a cybercrime misconception about their customers, and it’s costing them a lot of money, said cybersecurity expert Theresa Payton, the Monday luncheon keynote speaker. “The conventional wisdom [in cybercrime and fraud] is that ‘humans are the weakest link … That’s why we have security problems.’ I want to change that conversation now.

“I used to feel that way when I was in the financial services industry,” she said. “I’d say, ‘I wish we could just train our customers on the little bit of what I know. My job would be safer and easier to do, and we’d all be happier.’ We’ve been talking this way for decades. We keep asking ourselves, ‘Why do people click on links? Why do people open attachments? … Why do people make these mistakes?’

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Building a Culture of Whistleblowing in Africa

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Building a Culture of Whistleblowing in Africa

“I hope you are not one of those people who think Africa is a country. Africa is a continent.” Attendees of the session titled “Cultural Orientation and Whistleblowing in Africa,” led by Rabiu Olowo, CFE, got a good chuckle out of this opening statement. During his session, Olowo shared a few factors that influence and affect whistleblowing culture in Africa. Before going into the factors, though, Olowo made sure attendees understood a few basic things about Africa itself and about his background.

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Yes, You Can Measure Integrity

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Yes, You Can Measure Integrity

In their breakout session at the 30th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference, Vince Walden, partner, Jonathan Feig, partner, and Arpit Bothra, senior manager, all from the Forensic and Integrity Services unit at EY, laid out a roadmap for effectively measuring integrity within an organization. Feig emphasized at the beginning that this is a difficult task and it isn’t perfect, but he said, “we can’t let perfection get in the way of progress.”

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Ethical Leadership: It’s Not As Easy As You Think

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Ethical Leadership: It’s Not As Easy As You Think

When you think of leadership, what springs to mind? Is it authority? Confidence? Having a vision? Do you think leadership is something assigned to people? Or does it occur naturally? If you’re the leader of a team or department, you might want to stop thinking about your own thoughts and look outward.

“Everybody has their own definition of leadership,” said Bret Hood, retired FBI Special Agent and the director of 21st Century Learning & Consulting, in his Monday-morning session at the 30th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference. “Who’s definition most important? … The people you’re serving.”

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Head of U.K. SFO: Diverse Teams Have Led to 3 Life Lessons

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Head of U.K. SFO: Diverse Teams Have Led to 3 Life Lessons

“Fabulous teammates” have taught Lisa Osofsky, the new director of the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office, three top lessons over the years: 1) Make a clear plan. 2) Listen. 3) Find the truth.

“I have worked with teams over time — teams that evolve because the nature of fraud changed with the flattening of the globe. I have learned from veteran investigators,” said Osofksy, the keynote speaker during today’s opening session. “I have learned from young and eager investigators new to the job. I have learned that two or three or four heads are better than one, especially when we’re unraveling fraud. Let me … try to distill what those teams have taught me.” Osofsky received the Dr. Donald R. Cressey Award for a lifetime of achievement in the detection and deterrence of fraud.

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