Profiling The Fraudster: Removing the Mask to Prevent and Detect Fraud

Chapter 4Corruption

“CORRUPTION IS THE ABUSE OF ENTRUSTED power for private gain. It hurts everyone who depends on the integrity of people in a position of authority,” according to Transparency International (2013). The 2013 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption around the world, focusing on bribery, kickbacks in procurement, embezzlement of funds, and the effectiveness of anticorruption efforts. Based on expert opinion, the CPI ranks countries based on how corrupt their public sector is perceived to be in countries worldwide, scoring them from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). Covering 177 countries, the 2013 index paints a worrying picture. While a handful perform well, not one single country gets a perfect score. More than two-thirds score less than 50.

Huguette Labelle, chair of Transparency International, says, “It is time to stop those who get away with acts of corruption. The legal loopholes and lack of political will in government facilitate both domestic and cross-border corruption, and call for our intensified efforts to combat the impunity of the corrupt.”

An organization requesting contractors to propose for a lucrative contract, government launching a competitive tender, or simply a company setting up operations abroad are just a few of the areas where corruption can breed. When it does, resources are wasted, the corrupt benefit at the expense of others, and societies suffer. So, how can corruption be ...