It was nice to see members again at The Pirates House after having two weeks off of meetings. Since there wasn't any Rotary business items to discuss, President Laura Lane introduced our speaker for the day, Dr. Tom Buckhoff who is an accounting professor at Georgia Southern University.
Dr. Buckhoff spoke to the club about fraud investigation. He said that fraud is typically found in small business and nonprofit organizations. Nonprofit's are more vulnerable because they believe most people would not take advantage of them since they are a charity. He said that about 85% of Catholic dioceses have trouble with fraud and internal theft. 70% of fraud is committed by one person acting alone. Therefore, it is better to have companions handling money in order to minimize the risk. If you suspect someone of fraud, it is easier to get them to cooperate by saying you want to clear their name. Dr. Buckhoff refers to this line of questioning as the reverse proof approach. 30% of people who have committed fraud say it was a crime of opportunity. If the organization has controls in place, then it helps keep people honest. He recommended organizations need a compliance audit once a year to make sure controls are being followed. Finally, he said online donations are the best way to prevent fraud.