Fraud and risk incidents on the rise for construction, engineering, and infrastructure businesses

According to the Kroll Annual Global Fraud and Risk Report 2016/17, construction, engineering, and infrastructure companies around the globe are experiencing fraud, cyber, and security incidents so frequently it has become the “new normal.”

Seven of the 10 executives in the sector surveyed in the report said their company fell victim to fraud in the past year with vendor, supplier, or procurement fraud being the most prevalent kind of fraud suffered at 28%. Internal financial fraud followed at 21%, and corruption and bribery, theft of physical assets, and misappropriation of company funds were next with each one being reported by 19% of respondents.

Cyber attacks became increasingly common in 2016, as well. 77% of respondents reported their company suffered a cyber incident in the past 12 months with a virus or worm infestation being the most common at 35%. Email based phishing attacks were the next most common at 30%.

“This year’s Kroll Global Fraud and Risk Report shows that it’s becoming an increasingly risky world, with the largest ever proportion of companies reporting fraud and similarly high levels of cyber and security breaches,” said Tommy Helsby, Co-Chairman, Kroll Investigations & Disputes, in a press release.

Often, companies worry about attacks originating from external sources, but according to the report, across all sectors, the most common perpetrators of fraud, cyber, and security incidents in 2016 were current and former employees. On the reverse side, insiders were also the most likely people to discover fraud occurring. 44% of respondents across all sectors said a recent fraud has been discovered through a whistleblowing program. Additionally, 39% said it was detected through an internal audit.

You can receive a full copy of the report by clicking here.