ABSTRACT
This chapter is about how to let fantasy fly while simultaneously applying a sense of structure by: exploring what is meant by the phrase 'follow the money', how it lies at the heart of fraud detection and why a certain level of structure and methods is required to keep focused on fraud and 'stay on target', and at the same time allow more time for reflection and creative thinking; overcoming the 'defeatist attitude' that finding fraud is not possible, that there are too many false alarms, that it is not possible to get proof, etc. The flow of money is one of the most reliable sources of information. And it is not just what is there but also what is not there which gives away that something is wrong. ‘Follow the money’ is a popular catch-phrase which came into being soon after the Watergate scandal, and has been used since in investigative journalism, political debate and in popular culture.
