Unstructured Data Analytics

CHAPTER 5The Power of UDA to Improve Fraud Detection and Prevention

If you torture the data long enough, it will confess to anything.

—Ronald Coase, Nobel Prize winner in Economics

INTRODUCTION

In today's globally connected arena, thanks to social media, the Internet, cloud computing, mobile connectivity, and Big Data, we can instantly share who we are, where we are, what we are doing, what we will do, and with whom! We are constantly leaving digital traces that include information about our behavior, intent, needs, preferences, and likes. Everything we do in this connected ecosystem is digitized, and this digital data, when properly mined or simply linked to other data, can provide evidence to detect and prevent fraudulent behavior for businesses, organizations, and government institutions.

I remember the story of Jennifer, a financial adviser at my local bank, who three years ago, got from her doctor a six-month sick leave, granting her 80 percent of her salary paid by her employer. According to her doctor, Jennifer required mandatory rest without any sports or activities. Unfortunately for Jennifer, two weeks later the human resources (HR) benefits manager discovered via her Facebook connection that Jennifer was having good time at Salt Lake City, skiing and going to the local night club several times a week. Jennifer had been posting several photos of herself skiing, drinking, and dancing late at the bar with friends. The HR department was informed and decided to take ...