Fraud is continuing to increase this year, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new survey by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
The report found that 79 percent of anti-fraud professionals have seen an increase in the overall level of fraud as of November, compared to 77 percent in August and 68 percent in May. Thirty-eight percent of the respondents said in November the increase has been significant, compared to 34 percent in August and 25 percent in May.
Diwas KC is a professor at Emory University's Goizueta Business School, where his research focuses on healthcare delivery and pricing. He has been analyzing CMS-mandated hospital pricing data to build procedure-level benchmarks for the Georgia commercial market. Data source for article: CMS-mandated hospital machine-readable files (2026), Georgia hospitals, commercial payer rates. Facility fees only — excludes physician and anesthesia fees.
Larry Cao, CFA, is Senior Market Intelligence Analyst, AI, at American Banker, where he focuses on the adoptions of artificial intelligence across banking and financial services.
Larry has more than two decades of experience in investment research and financial services, with a particular focus on AS adoption, data-driven investment processes, and the future of finance. He previously served as a senior research leader at CFA Institute, where he led and authored research on AI, big data, fintech, investment management, and evolving skillsets in the financial industry. He is the editor of Handbook of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Applications in Investments and author of research on AI adoption and T-shaped teams.
Larry's research and commentary have been cited by regulators and industry organizations globally, and featured in major media outlets including Bloomberg, the Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Reuters. Earlier in his career, he held roles at Morningstar/Ibbotson Associates, Munder Capital Management, and McKinsey & Company.
Larry holds an MBA in finance from the University of Notre Dame.
Some of Larry's publications include:
Books and reports
Ten Structural Shifts in AI Adoption: Evidence, Frameworks, and Emerging Frontiers (2018 -2025) - Handbook of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data in Investments
- T-Shaped Teams
- AI Pioneers in Investment Management
- Multi-Asset Strategies: The Future of Investment Management
Interviews/presentations (video)
Dave Manely is the CEO of The Expert Press, which helps companies conceive, create, and nationally publish high-authority thought leadership pieces. Generative AI is changing how prospects discover and evaluate expertise, as AI increasingly builds vendor shortlists before buyers ever visit a website. In this article, Dave argues why firms must shift from producing high volumes of marketing content to creating citation-worthy, third-party validated expertise that AI can surface. He also outlines the practical changes necessary to remain visible, credible, and discoverable in an AI-first buying environment.
Cyber fraud, payment fraud (such as schemes with debit and credit cards) and identity theft are the three top fraud schemes seeing increases, according to anti-fraud professionals.
The largest increase in observed fraud was in financial statement fraud, with 7 percent more anti-fraud professionals reported seeing financial statement fraud in November, compared to August. That could be because as companies continue to see their profits drop, they feel more pressure to cook the books.
The survey also found 77 percent of anti-fraud professionals report that investigating and preventing fraud is more challenging now, while 71 percent said detecting fraud is more challenging as a result of the pandemic.
ACFE members anticipate the fraud trend will continue, even as vaccines have begun rolling out this week in the U.S. Ninety percent of the survey respondents expect a further increase in the level of fraud over the next 12 months, with 44 percent predicting the change is likely to be significant.
Nearly half (48 percent) of the organizations polled expect to increase their investments in anti-fraud technology, and 38 percent intend to raise the use of fraud-related consultants or other external resources. Budgets for anti-fraud training and professional development are experiencing a similar increase (according to 37 percent of the organizations polled), but nearly one-quarter (24 percent) anticipate a decrease in this area. The budget component most likely to see decreases is travel for anti-fraud staff, which shouldn’t be surprising given the plunging levels of air travel in general over this past year, with 38 percent of the survey respondents expecting a reduction in funds for travel in the year ahead.
