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Fraud Analyst Duties and Responsibilities

While the daily activities of fraud analysts vary by the industry in which they are employed, our evaluation of job postings revealed some core tasks central to the position, including the following:

Resolve Fraud Cases When someone gets wind of a possible scam or similar problem affecting the organization or its customers, fraud analysts spring to action. For instance, when a person who spots unauthorized charges on her credit card statement calls the financial institution that issued the card, the fraud analyst asks questions, fills out proper paperwork, helps with refunds and changing the account number, seeks to pinpoint the source of the fraud, and notifies authorities (fraud analysts do not apprehend, just report).

Monitor Accounts for Fraud Spotting fraud before it turns into a major issue saves time and money. Fraud analysts at a bank, for example, may notice unusual activities on certain accounts, such as a large number of foreign transactions. By looking for patterns and checking authenticity, a scam may be stopped before spreading further. Researching problems reported at other institutions helps analysts learn more about trending schemes and prevention methods.

Innovate Fraud Prevention Strategies By looking at data and thinking about fraudulent activity, fraud analysts come up with new techniques to prevent problems from happening. A professional who works for an e-commerce site, for instance, may examine online transactions to improve algorithms designed to separate legitimate customers from people trying to rip off the company.

Understand Procedures Fraud analysts need a good comprehension of laws concerning fraud. Such knowledge helps them conduct investigations and collect evidence in ways that ensure the best chances of the guilty parties getting caught and punished.

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Fraud Analyst Education and Training

Most fraud analysts hold a bachelor’s degree in finance, computer science, or a related field. Job prospects increase for people holding certification from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. Obtaining that distinction involves education, professional experience, and passing a detailed exam that covers areas such as law, fraud detection, and deterring actions. New hires receive a good amount of on-the-job training to learn the specific employer’s fraud detection measures and procedures for resolving potential fraud situations. All analysts should plan on being lifelong learners since new fraudulent schemes and prevention techniques (especially technological advances) arise frequently.

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Fraud Analyst Salary and Outlook

The median annual salary for a fraud analyst, according to PayScale, is about $45,000. Workers on the low end of the pay range earn about $32,000, while the highest paid make more than $67,000 per year. Full-time analysts may receive benefits such as medical insurance, paid time off, and retirement plans.

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Helpful Resources

To help you find more information about fraud analysts, we’ve compiled this list of valuable sources:

Expert Fraud Investigation: A Step-by-Step Guide – gain a greater understanding of all that’s involved in spotting, examining, and resolving potential fraud cases with this book that reviewers call “an excellent primer” and “a must-read for anyone who wants to learn more about the basics”

Association of Certified Fraud Examiners – as a major provider of anti-fraud training and education, the ACFE website is particularly useful to people seeking to advance their careers in the industry. Check out the large section tailored to questions frequently posed by newcomers

Exposing Fraud: Skills, Processes, and Practicalities – this comprehensive book covers best practices and demonstrates how to apply them to a variety of situations in which fraud occurs. It also explores the psychological profiles of those who operate scams and other unethical acts

Fraud Analytics Using Descriptive, Predictive, and Social Network Techniques: A Guide to Data Science for Fraud Detection – stopping fraud before it leads to considerable damage involves paying close attention to details. This textbook explores how to monitor data to alert detectors of potential problems

Payment, Fraud & Crypto Professionals – this LinkedIn group provides a forum for its 37,000-plus members to discuss industry issues