APPENDIX B

Chapter Supplements

This appendix offers descriptions, summaries, examples, and even poetry(!) related to the topics discussed throughout the book.

Supplement to the Preface: 2011 ACFE Video, Inside the Fraudster's Mind

In 2011, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) developed a video for its members consisting of excerpts from interviews with numerous convicted white-collar felons.1 The host for the video was Tonia Cooke, and reputed criminologist Gilbert Geis, a past president of the ACFE, provided expert commentary. Among the white-collar criminals featured in the video are Kenneth Kemp, Mark Whitacre, Barry Webne, Aaron Beam, Steve Comisar, Patrick Kuhse, Justin Paperny, Kevin Barnes, and Samuel Antar.

Arguing that fraudsters think differently than the rest of us do, the video highlights many of the white-collar criminals' “thinking errors,” such as:

  • Sense of entitlement. Fraudsters seem to believe that they have received unfair, inequitable treatment and are therefore only taking what they're owed.
  • Being overly optimistic. Fraudsters don't believe they can ever get caught, so there's no inhibition against doing whatever it takes to make money.
  • Rationalization. Fraudsters sincerely believe that they aren't the bad guys and that committing fraud is like an addiction: they can't stop. Short stints in jail are not a sufficient deterrent—hence the high rates of recidivism.
  • Peer or financial pressure. Although the susceptibility is situational, CEOs are ...

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