14th National Public Sector Fraud and Corruption Congress – Agenda

13-14 November 2024, Sydney

Strategic solutions to contemporary challenges in combatting fraud and corruption

 

 

Day One

9.00 Opening Remarks from the Chair

 

9.10 Case Study:
Countering increasingly sophisticated fraud attacks at UK HM Revenue and Customs

  • Accounting for the increasingly sophisticated methods of public sector fraud
  • Implementing innovative fraud control and investigation measures
  • Collaborating with other public and private sector agencies to limit fraudster capabilities
  • Combatting emerging technologies which increase fraud risks

 De Quincey Bailey, Illicit Finance Lead, HMRC Fraud Investigation Service, Organised Crime Operations, HM Revenue and Customs (UK)

 

10.10 Collaborating with other agencies and communities of practice in counterfraud initiatives

  • Sharing counterfraud information, intelligence, and strategies within government
  • Building productive networks of counterfraud and anticorruption professionals
  • Contacting key experts and colleagues when developing a new counterfraud strategy
  • Identifying areas within which interagency collaboration can work effectively

George Montanez, Assistant Commissioner Financial Crime Program, Australian Taxation Office

 

10.50 Morning coffee

 

11.20 Addressing fraud and corruption from an evidence-led psychological perspective

  • Identifying key warning signs of potential misconduct
  • Pairing potential fraud motivators with common behavioural red flags
  • Ensuring your line leaders are able to target indicators of fraud risk in their teams
  • Designing effective policies and practices around behavioural motivators of fraud

Dr Jennifer Wilson, Counterfraud Subject Matter Expert, The Behavioural Scientist

 

 

12.00 Creating a durable and engaged fraud and corruption control culture

  • Gathering useful data on organisational perceptions of fraud
  • Achieving enthusiastic buy-in for fraud control from your teams
  • Providing practical avenues for employees to support a strong integrity culture
  • Supporting your fraud and corruption control strategy with evidence-led case studies

Catherine Ellis, Executive Director Risk, Strategy and Customer Support, Service NSW

 

12.40 Lunch

 

1.40 Targeting key fraud and corruption risks within your procurement strategy

  • Identifying prevalent forms procurement fraud in the modern organisation
  • Embedding checks and balances in your procurement function to deter fraudsters
  • Conducting ongoing audits and reviews to minimise insider procurement fraud
  • Implementing practical strategies to detect potentially fraudulent suppliers
  • Collaborating effectively between fraud prevention and procurement functions

Marea Getsios, Procurement and Contracts Manager, Inner West Council

 

2.20 Strengthening integrity and ethical decision-making through robust governance

  • Establishing clear policies and standards for ethical decision-making
  • Building awareness of the risks and impacts of fraud and corruption
  • Implementing integrity-focused controls in collaboration across business functions
  • Increasing accountability and transparency of processes at an executive level

Simon Granville, Head of Risk and Audit, Sydney Water

 

3.00 Afternoon tea

 

3.30 Case study:
Ensuring diligent reporting of potential fraud and corruption risks in your organisation

  • Understanding the characteristics of a reportable incident which requires escalation
  • Investigating alleged misconduct proactively and efficiently
  • Sharing knowledge around lessons learned through new cases and investigations
  • Designing appropriate policies, training and procedures following resolution of cases

Elizabeth Renneberg, Internal Ombudsman, City of Parramatta, Cumberland City and Inner West Council Internal Ombudsman Shared Service

 

4.10 Case study:
Developing a fraud and corruption aware culture using an intelligence-led approach

  • Utilising your business’ best resource – your people
  • Focusing your limited resources on key areas of vulnerability
  • Engaging your workforce in the fraud prevention and detection process
  • Growing an ethical, well-informed speak-up culture

Jane Edwards, Executive Manager Fraud Management and Investigation, National Broadband Network Australia

 

4.50 End of Conference Day One

5.00 Networking Drinks

 

 

Day Two

9.00 Opening Remarks from the Chair

9.10 Utilising new technology and data analysis tools to combat fraud and corruption

  • Maximising the effectiveness of a data science framework to combat fraud and corruption
  • Opportunities and considerations concerning the application of technology and data analysis tools
  • Applying findings drawn from data across the business and beyond to drive counter fraud solutions
  • Leveraging data to achieve buy-in for continuous improvement and reduction of fraud risk
  • Setting the context for data analysis within the organisational operating model to find fraud and demonstrate the value of activity

David Dixon, Data Acquisition Manager, NHS Counter Fraud Authority (UK)

 

10.00 Mitigating the risks of digital fraud and cybercrime in the future of work

  • Understanding emergent digital fraud threats in their ongoing context
  • Collaborating with technology experts within and beyond your organisation
  • Ensuring foundational IT and security literacy throughout your workforce
  • Preparing your organisation for future network security threats
  • Establishing practical tips and procedures to minimise common cyberfraud

Richard Gentile, Cyber Protect Officer and Cyber Crime Detective, British Transport Police (UK)

 

10.50 Morning coffee

 

11.20 Preparing your fraud control strategy for the new challenges of Artificial Intelligence

  • Understanding Artificial Intelligence in simple terms
  • Utilising AI-based fraud case studies in your control strategy
  • Mitigating the risk of AI fraud with foundational security processes and tools
  • Leveraging effective technology and software to combat AI fraud
  • Preparing your organisation for future advances in AI fraud attack

Dr Sharif Abuadbba, Team Leader Distributed Systems Security, CSIRO’s Data61

 

12.00 Integrating accessible fraud prevention and detection processes within business-as-usual

  • Constructing operational counterfraud procedures around human factors
  • Partnering with other internal functions to integrate fraud controls unobtrusively
  • Simplifying fraud prevention and detection processes for improved compliance
  • Ensuring simplified fraud control processes do not create new vulnerabilities

Peter Timson, General Manager Fraud Control and Investigations, Services Australia

 

12.40 Lunch

 

1.40 Case Study:
Combatting Identity Fraud in the public sector – a perspective from the Office of the Inspector-General of Taxation and the Australian Taxation Office

David Pengilley, Deputy Taxation Ombudsman, Office of the Inspector-General and Taxation Ombudsman

 Rebecca Fealy, Assistant Commissioner Fraud and Criminal Behaviours, Australian Taxation Office

 

2.20 Managing the risks of identity fraud within your organisation

  • Developing procedures to minimise common identity fraud risks
  • Training your workforce to identify and report attempted identity fraud
  • Protecting your organisation from impersonation that attacks external stakeholders
  • Ensuring identity fraud is appropriately investigated and resolved in the worst case

Sam Stuart, Director Cyber, Intelligence, and Digital Identity, Mastercard

 

3.00 Afternoon tea

 

3.30 Conducting effective integrity investigations in the public sector

  • Commencing your investigation based on promising reporting of red flags
  • Providing a transparent and fair investigation to build trust with the organisation
  • Conducting your investigation within privacy and confidentiality obligations
  • Ensuring your interview technique is effective and outcome-focused
  • Managing the unique challenges in public sector fraud and corruption investigations

James Gaynor, Inspector-General, Office of the Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force

 

4.10 Case study:
Key lessons from ICAC’s Operation Hector: Reviewing and addressing fallout from unmanaged risks of corruption in tendering processes

  • Reflecting on the scope of the parties involved in corruption and the subsequent complexity of investigations
  • Exploring how unmanaged corruption risks snowballed into serious incidences of misconduct
  • Identifying points of intervention in dishonest procurement, contracting and tendering processes
  • Designing anti corruption recommendations which address the key deficiencies uncovered by the investigation

Karen Patterson, Senior Corruption Prevention Officer, NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption

 

4.50 Closing Remarks from the Chair

 

5.00 End of Conference Day Two