Survey to Investigate Fraud in NFPs
27 August 2013 at 12:05 pm
International accounting and advisory firm, BDO has launched its Australian Not for Profit Fraud Survey 2014, saying fraud is still one of the biggest threats to the sector.
The 2014 survey, themed Identify your risk profile and susceptibility to fraud, is the fifth biennial BDO survey, and will build on the findings from surveys conducted between 2004 and 2012.
BDO says the survey will provide a benchmark for Not for Profit organisations by revealing the perception and level of fraud in the sector, and will aim to raise awareness of the type of fraud risks that currently exist, how they occur and how organisations can best manage them.
BDO’s Not for Profit Lead Partner Chris Skelton said fraud continued to be one of the single biggest threats to the sector.
“Fraud is an issue that threatens every organisation, whether they are corporate, government or not-for-profit,” Skelton said.
“The NFP sector contributes billions of dollars to Australia’s economy each year so it goes without saying that fraud has a much wider – and damaging – impact than simply the individual organisations targeted.
“Fraud is perhaps one of the single biggest threats to a Not for Profit organisation’s bottom line as it directly impacts public reputation and future community support.
“Given that funds lost through fraud are often never recovered, it is absolutely critical to understand how and why fraud is committed within this sector and what we can do to prevent such incidents occurring,” he said.
Skelton said he expects the survey to provide valuable insight for NFPs in managing the risk of fraud.
“Our survey is designed to identify what kind of fraud exists within the sector, find out who is most susceptible and, most importantly, gain insight into how the sector approaches and manages risk,” Skelton said.
“By analysing how the sector approaches risk management we will hopefully be able to help organisations develop effective strategies to combat fraud in the future.”
Not for Profits can complete the survey at www.bdo.com.au/fraudsurvey2014
