Report serious fraud and corruption

Business impacts

Fraud and corruption against government programmes can result in substantial business costs that go well beyond the direct financial loss. The cost of responding to fraud is significant and frequently overlooked. These costs can include activities such as assessing the damage, detecting issues, investigating incidents and taking corrective action. This can lead to additional expenses such as audits, programme reviews and redesigning systems to prevent future fraud.

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What impacts can look like

Fraud assessment costs

When fraud is suspected, organisations may need to dedicate resources (employee time, systems and other resources) to assess whether an investigation is needed.

Fraud detection costs

Detecting fraud requires ongoing investment in activities such as compliance checks, tip-off mechanisms, data analytics, specialised technology and interagency data sharing. 

Fraud investigation costs 

Fraud investigations can be complex, time consuming and resource intensive. Costs will vary depending on the size and complexity of the fraud. 

Fraud response costs

Once fraud is detected, taking action – whether legal, operational or administrative – will require additional resources.

Restitution for affected individuals 

Public sector organisations may need to restore services or offer compensation to people impacted by fraud.

Costs to review or audit programmes

Once fraud is identified programmes may need to be reviewed or audited to prevent future issues – which has a cost in terms of time and resources. 

Key questions to consider

Understanding the broader business impacts of fraud means asking the right questions.

  • What could be the wider business costs required to respond to fraud in your programme?
  • Do you know how many allegations of fraud are made per year? 
  • What is the business cost of assessing whether to investigate allegations of fraud against your programme? 
  • What are the costs of your fraud prevention activities?
  • Would identified fraud result in a review of your programme? 
  • How much would a review cost in terms of time and resources?
  • Would identified fraud result in retrofitting or redesigning your programme? 
  • How much would a redesign cost in terms of time and resources? 

Other impacts

Download the full guide

Explore the full resource to identify the impacts of fraud, read about real-world examples, and consider key questions to help assess and prepare for potential risks to your programme or operations.
Not every impact will apply to every organisation or initiative, but being aware of them can help your organisation strengthen its fraud prevention efforts and protect those who rely on its services.

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