CFE study guide
CFE · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) credential is awarded by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), which describes itself as the world's largest anti-fraud organization, delivering training, offering the CFE credential and fostering a global community of anti-fraud professionals. The credential is designed for people whose work involves detecting, investigating, resolving or deterring fraud - internal auditors, external auditors, accountants, compliance and risk staff, investigators, law-enforcement and government personnel, and executives with fraud-related responsibility. Exam candidates are tested across four broad content areas: fraud prevention and deterrence; financial transactions and fraud schemes; fraud investigation; and law and the legal elements of fraud. Each area rewards a different kind of knowledge, from control design and fraud risk assessment through scheme mechanics and evidence-gathering to the legal standards that govern interviews, documentation and testimony. The CFE study guide has 4 sections and about 1,434 words.
01Fraud Prevention and Deterrence
Fraud prevention and deterrence is about reducing the opportunity and the perceived payoff for fraud before a scheme begins. Distinguish three terms that questions deliberately blur: prevention (controls that make fraud physically harder), deterrence (measures that raise the perceived likelihood of detection and the severity of consequences), and detection (finding fraud after it happens).
396 words, about 2 min02Financial Transactions and Fraud Schemes
Almost every question in this domain hangs off the fraud tree : corruption, asset misappropriation, and financial statement fraud. Asset misappropriation is the most frequent and least costly per case; financial statement fraud is the rarest and the most expensive.
354 words, about 2 min03Fraud Investigation
An investigation begins with predication - a reasonable, fact-based basis to believe fraud has occurred or is occurring. A hunch is not predication.
333 words, about 2 min04Law and the Legal Elements of Fraud
Common-law fraud requires: (1) a material false statement of fact, (2) knowledge of its falsity (scienter), (3) justifiable reliance by the victim, and (4) damages . If a scenario fails any one element, the fraud claim fails.
351 words, about 2 min