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Proactive Fraud Prevention

By Bert F. Lacativo
May 01, 2003

Way back in the 80s, companies in the U.S. Defense industry determined that it was in their best interests to band together and develop the Defense Industry Initiatives as a method to police themselves during a time when their industry was fraught with fraud and corruption. As an aftermath, ethics and compliance programs have been developed and implemented by the majority of U.S. companies. To further entice companies to establish an effective and proactive program designed to detect and, to the extent possible, prevent violations of law The Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations, passed in November 1991, rewards these companies with relief when sentenced for violations of law.

While these programs have been primarily designed to demonstrate that a company is serious about acting ethically and within the law, we have seen a record number of financial restatements in the past year. One can surmise that this is due to a lapse in the effectiveness of those companies' ethics and compliance efforts.

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