• Mark Cuban and Sharesleuth.com: Good or bad idea?

    Wired Magazine featured an article on Mark Cuban and his Sharesleuth.com website. In theory, it kind of sounds like a good idea. Mark and company think that the media has given up critically examining public companies. They think there are […]

  • Goals Led Dell to Cook the Books

    CNET News.com By Erica Ogg An internal probe finds the PC maker fudged the timing of expenses and payments on its balance sheets. So where does it go from here? Though Dell has finished an internal investigation into its accounting […]

  • Reflections on Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

    It’s been five years since the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and for many of us, it seems like it’s been around for a lifetime. While the intent behind the legislation was good, it has been extremely costly, […]

  • Two Years Later, Dell Stays Mum on Accounting Probe

    USA TODAY By Michelle Kessler SAN FRANCISCO — A Securities and Exchange Commission probe into Dell’s accounting is more than 2 years old — and the PC giant won’t say when it might be over. Dell (DELL) has revealed very […]

  • What Frauds Are Prevalent, And Preventable

    Compliance Week By Jaclyn Jaeger While government officials congratulate themselves for a job well done since establishing the Corporate Fraud Task Force five years ago, experts tell Compliance Week that institutional fraud is still a rampant problem. According to a […]

  • On Making Money As a Fraud Investigator

    The recent publication of a report detailing the results of an investigation of Usana Health Sciences done by Barry Minkow, Fraud Discovery Institue, and other professionals has prompted some criticism. One criticism I’ve seen is the fact that *gasp* the […]

  • The Elusive World of “Nonfinancial” Fraud

    Compliance Week By Tammy Whitehouse Now that Sarbanes-Oxley has made big progress buttoning down internal controls over financial reporting, the next great frontier for potential abuse is emerging: nonfinancial fraud. That’s the lesson, at least, from companies like BP and […]

  • Enron: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

    Written by Tracy L. Coenen, CPA, CFF Andrews Litigation Reporter After a trial that lasted almost four months, Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling, both former heads of Enron Corp., have been convicted of multiple federal offenses related to the collapse […]

  • The Fraud’s In the Figures: Finding Clues in Financial Documents

    SIU Today By Daniel W. Draz, MS, CFE Many types of insurance policies require that insureds submit financial documentation in support of insurance underwriting applications and claims submitted for payment. While the financial documentation submitted may be totally legitimate, it’s […]

  • Your Number is Up: Recovering From Identity Theft

    Written by Tracy L. Coenen, CPA, CFF Wisconsin Law Journal Reprinted in St. Louis Daily Record Identity theft affects countless consumers and businesses each year, costing millions and maybe even billions of dollars. In 2004, the Federal Trade Commission received […]