Group One Investigations Investigating Online Personal and Business Fraud With Expert Fraud Investigators

With everyone stuck inside for at least the next couple of months, you’d probably be thinking that private investigators in Melbourne would be having a well-deserved rest? And while you’d be right in that our counter surveillance teams are definitely switching their focus (and indeed putting down their cameras) while everyone stays indoors, with the whole world moving online, our fraud investigators have been busier than ever keeping our clients safe from unscrupulous online fraudsters and dodgy business dealings.

Fraud Investigator

So, what’s a fraud investigator? Our fraud investigators are highly trained and professional experts with a diverse range of backgrounds from police and military, to Government, financial, legal and tech experts who are proficient at spotting fraud and putting a stop to it.

Our fraud investigations teams have conducted investigations into complex fraud, internal and external fraud in business and personal situations, financial fraud and many other variations of this unfortunately all too common misconduct. They have been responsible for undertaking investigations for a wide range of clients from Government clients requiring extremely complex investigations, to business fraud committed by employees, competitors or suppliers, and clients who have had money taken from them under false pretences by friends and sadly even family.

What is Fraud?

Fraud is when someone (or a group of people, or even an entire organisation) lies and is generally deceptive in their actions with the express aim of taking money or property under false pretences, including intellectual property, from an individual or organisation. It’s basically stealing but less obvious than breaking and entering, and unfortunately often more insidious and damaging.

Often fraud will involve using fake documents, identities or credentials (such as someone phoning your home for example, pretending to be a representative of Telstra or your bank to encourage you to give them access to your home computer so they can access passwords and online banking details).

It can also include providing false information for personal financial gain, or to give the fraudster another type of advantage such as majorly lying on a resume or in a bid for a business contract to gain a position of responsibility in a company or to beat out another supplier for a lucrative contract.

In business, fraud can be internal, i.e. committed by someone in your organisation, or external, i.e. outside parties working against your business or organisation. It can even be an entire organisation or group behaving in an unlawful and dishonest manner against another party.

In your personal life, a friend or family could have asked you for a loan or borrowed/ taken something from you for a reason you now believe to be false. Or encouraged you to invest in a scheme you now have some doubts about. And, sometimes the fraud isn’t perpetrated against you directly, for example it could be a one family member acting fraudulently towards another. In this case, you might become aware of it and need some assistance from a qualified fraud investigator. Of course, there are still honest mistakes made in this world, and mistakes such as these do not count as fraud.

Fortunately, if you’re unsure of the nature of what has happened to you or a third party, particularly in your personal life where it’s vital to be sure of a situation before acting in case of causing irreparable damage, our expert team is well able to discover what the case is and will proceed accordingly. If the people you suspect of fraud are innocent then you can simply enjoy the peace of mind of knowing that your business associates, competitors or friends or family are fair and honest. And if not, we will be able to help and support you with a course of action, whether that is a detailed investigation or something more simple.

What Do I Do If I’m a Victim of Fraud?

Firstly, don’t panic. Group One Investigations provides a free consultation so don’t feel that you don’t have anywhere to turn as you can call us for some free advice. From complex to simple cases of fraud, we can help you navigate the process.

As human beings, our gut instincts have played a crucial role in our survival for millennia but now we’re in the Digital Age, it’s essential that we avoid relaxing and believing that technology will do all the thinking for us and it’s never been so important to remain vigilant especially online.

All too often, our clients’ intuitions are proven correct and they were right to act, so contact Group One Investigations on 1800 181 880 or info@grouponeinvestigations.com.au at any time, and tell us your suspicions, and we’ll work out a plan of action or set an investigation in motion for you. And, we can also help you with advice to prevent similar situations from occurring again, particularly in cases of complex organisational fraud.