Forensic Accountants’ demand considering increasing incidents of cyber crimes is at its peak. It is not easy to be a forensic accountant as the investigations can not be fixed into the checklist and pre-defined parameters. Forensic accountants need the sixth sense to catch the frauds. It is not about reading the audit reports but its about investigative accounting. Forensic Accountants are becoming crusaders in investigating financial frauds.
In fact, there are no fixed guidelines that you can follow to be a forensic accountant. Forensic Accounting is a practice of utilizing accounting knowledge in litigation support. Data analysis is their key strength which helps them to understand different aspects and types of the frauds.
Globally Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) credential is considered to be the best in the anti fraud domain. They also have a little bit of flavour for forensic accounting. Learning helps in keeping pace with the latest trends in the ever changing world of cyber crimes and frauds.
Those thinking- “I know it all”, eventually become absolute. You should thrive to enhance your knowledge of the topics such as governance, risk and compliance related subjects in addition to the forensic accounting skill sets. Typically, forensic accounting services include the wide variety of assignments from identification of the red flags in the financial data to investigation of the insurance claims. Law enforcement agencies across the world engage with the forensic accountants when it comes to investigative skills in the accounting subjects.
Though, it is tough for professionals to take out time to focus on learning, here are some certifications which are professional friendly. Forensic accountants typically obtain Certified Forensic Accounting Professional (CFAP) credential and pursue degree in forensic accounting such as certified in financial forensics designations.
These certifications consider the need of the working professionals and customize their offerings. In some cases, the students are not even required to prepare for all the papers, they may get exemptions based on their experience.
If you are looking to acquire skills to detect fraud or upgrade your accounting skills, here are 5 certifications that you can have.
Certified Forensic Accounting Professional
This is our first choice of risk management certifications. In our opinion this is the best forensic accounting certification. This course is offered by NSE Academy (A wholly owned subsidiary of India’s National Stock Exchange). Forensic accounting is the most important course that the aspiring risk management professionals must take. It is an analysis of a financial evidences that are used in court proceedings. It elaborates fraud related provisions mentioned in the Companies Act 2013.
In this course, you learn about the application of accounting methods helpful in detecting financial crimes and frauds. It is done to investigate Asset Misappropriation, falsification of financial statement, and corruption which may include bribery, extortion, bid rigging, FCPA compliance etc.
Certified Forensic Accounting Professional is a Gold standard certification in the forensic accounting domain. It is considered as benchmark for the commerce students in India. It is not necessary to be a Chartered Accountant or a Certified Public Accountant to take up this certification.
It requires expertise in both accounting and technology. It is important for an finance professional to learn forensic accounting to have a in-depth understanding of what all frauds can be carried out in the business you are working in and what should be your response to tackle the evidence. After completion of studying the course material assessment test is conducted by the NSE Academy.
Certified Stock Market Forensic Accountant
This course is offered by Indiaforensic Center of Studies, which is one of the largest educational institutions imparting training and certifications in forensic audit domain. This fraud risk management course gives you deeper insights into the A-Z of forensic accounting and stock market frauds. It teaches you how to navigate through financial statements to spot the red flags of frauds in a stock market environment. It equips you with the skills to identify and investigate the frauds in the financial statements. And what can be better if you get all of this in a short and small certification course?
As a forensic accountant, you carry great responsibility on your shoulders. To become a good forensic accountant, you must be hands-on with many different aspects of frauds. May it be accounting, auditing, technology, laws and regulations and all other procedures that are needed to complete the investigation. To be a master in all these, all you need is to take Certified Stock Market Forensic Accountant course.
Udemy program on Fraud Investigation
If you love video learning and are comfortable using the Udemy, then there is a very good video learning course on the subject of fraud investigation and forensic accounting. Udemy programs are curated for the video content and this program offers a value for money. This one hour video learning program gives you broader overview of the frauds and also discuss some of the case studies such as zapper frauds. Considering the course fees this program is the finest of all. This program is offered by Indiaforensic in association with the Riskpro learning. This program is designed and developed for the global forensic accountants.
Forensic Accounting Certifications
Indiaforensic Center of Studies, which is one of the largest forensic accounting certification body in India, offers the following certification programs on the subject of forensic accounting.
Certification Name | Target Audience | Mode | Registration Link |
Certified Forensic Accounting Professional | Accounting, Commerce and Finance professionals with three years experience. | Distance Learning | CFAP Registration |
Certified Bank Forensic Accountant | FCU, RCU and Market Intelligence Units | Distance Learning | CBFA Registration |
Certified Insurance Forensic Accountant | Insurance Investigations, Internal Auditors | Distance Learning | CIFA Registration |
Certified Stock Market Forensic Accountant | Stock Brokers, Investors, PE Funds and credit rating analysts | Distance Learning | CSMFA Registration |
Certification in eCommerce Frauds | Professionals from eCommerce, Payment Gateways | Elearning | CEFS Registration |
Certification in Forensic Accounting and Fraud Detection | CA,CS,CMA and MBA students | Elearning | CFAFD Registration |
Certified Fraud Examiners
Similar to the Certified Forensic Accounting Professional (CFAP) course, they are specially designed to help global professionals in fraud detection and investigation. CFE credential will teach you vital aspects of fraud examination.It includes identifying red flags of frauds at global level. This course needs customization when it comes to applicability in India as the laws in USA and India are completely different.
Certificate Course on Forensic Accounting and Fraud Detection
This is a course offered by Riskpro Learning.This is a foundation level program for the employees of accounting firms provides the foundational knowledge for exciting, diverse, and increasingly in-demand forensic accounting careers. It is concentrated on the subject of white collar crimes. This is best forensic accounting certification for the entry level professionals. This course is completely offered in the video learning mode. Indiaforensic is one of the best institutes of certified forensic accountants in the world.
Certified Bank Forensic Accountant
Another offering from the Indiaforensic Center of Studies is the Certification in the banking forensic accounting. Due to the tremendous stress on banking sector due to growing delinquencies, this course becomes a must-have kind of certification for any aspiring banker. This course teaches you how technology is becoming important in detecting and perpetrating the frauds. This certification program is specially designed for the bankers who are working in fraud control units, risk containment units or market intelligence units of the banks. Certified Bank Forensic Accountant is a vital program for the bankers and aspiring bankers as it provides detailed classification of the traditional loan frauds to digitally enabled technology frauds.
Final Words
- So, enhance your forensic accounting skills, boost up your career and become a successful entrepreneur by taking up the above-mentioned certification courses. Please note that information published herein is obtained from the public domain.
[…] going on backfoot due to the role of their own members in perpetrating frauds, the new breed of Certified Forensic Accounting Professionals have gained the […]
[…] it comes to online shopping or eCommerce websites, a lot of frauds continue to happen in that space. This is a professional certification […]