AP Invoice Fraud Prevention: Red Flags and Effective Controls (Video) (Course Id 2686)

• Who is this course for?
  This course is designed for AP and procurement specialists, accounting managers, controllers, auditors, finance professionals, CPAs, accountants, and others needing Continuing Professional Education (CPE) who want practical skills for preventing and detecting accounts payable invoice fraud.
• What is this course about or what problem does this course solve?
  This course addresses AP invoice and vendor manipulation fraud by teaching participants how to identify common fraud schemes and red flags, implement preventive and detective controls, and use automation, AI, and data analytics to strengthen fraud prevention.
• Where can the knowledge from this course be used?
  The knowledge can be applied within organizational accounts payable, procurement, accounting, auditing, and financial oversight processes to recognize suspicious invoice or vendor activity, prevent fraudulent payments, detect potential fraud, and strengthen internal controls.
• Why is this course important to a CPA or Accountant?
  This course is important to a CPA or Accountant because AP fraud can cause significant financial losses, and professionals responsible for financial oversight need effective methods for identifying fraud risks, protecting organizational assets, and designing controls that prevent or detect fraudulent activity.
• When is this course relevant or timely?
  Released in 2025 and revised on October 18, 2025, this course is timely for professionals addressing ongoing occupational fraud risks and the growing use of digital, automated, RPA, AI, and data analytics solutions within financial processes.
• How is a course like this consumed or used?
  This 4.0-CPE-credit course is delivered as a QAS Self Study video course with 29 pages of course content, 12 review questions, real-world scenarios, downloadable AP Fraud and Vendor Manipulation Red-Flag Cards, and a 20-question final exam that requires a minimum score of 70% to earn CPE credit.

AP invoice or billing fraud is among the most common and expensive types of occupational fraud worldwide. According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), organizations lose approximately 5% of their revenue to fraud annually, with billing schemes accounting for roughly 22% of these cases globally! AP fraud schemes typically last a long time—often 18 months before detection—and over half of them cause losses exceeding $100,000.

This comprehensive course equips finance professionals with essential skills to detect, prevent, and combat accounts payable and vendor manipulation fraud. You'll master the critical aspects of AP fraud prevention through practical, real-world scenarios that blend theoretical knowledge with actionable strategies.

Through this focused training program, you'll learn to:

• Identify common AP fraud schemes: Discover the various deceptive methods fraudsters use to exploit accounts payable systems, including fictitious invoices, shell vendors, and payment diversions
• Recognize red flags and warning signs: Learn to spot subtle indicators that may signal fraudulent invoice or vendor activity
• Implement effective preventive controls: Explore key strategies to establish robust safeguards that prevent AP fraud before it occurs
• Deploy detective controls: Gain insights into monitoring techniques that help identify suspicious activities early
• Leverage technology solutions: Understand how to use RPA (Robotic Process Automation) and AI (Artificial Intelligence) to enhance your fraud prevention capabilities

The course provides downloadable AP Fraud and Vendor Manipulation Red-Flag Cards that serve as quick reference guides for identifying the most common fraud indicators.

Whether you're an AP or procurement specialist, accounting manager, controller, auditor, or finance professional, this course will sharpen your "fraud lens" and equip you with practical tools to protect your organization from costly AP fraud schemes and vendor manipulation.

Course Learning Objectives

• 1.Identify common accounts payable (AP) fraud schemes and understand how they operate.2.Recognize key red flags in AP processes that may indicate fraudulent activity is occurring.3.Implement critical preventive controls in AP processes to block fraudulent activity before payments occur.4.Design and deploy effective detective controls to identify actual fraud cases.5.Leverage modern technology solutions and data analytics to strengthen your controls.6.Apply knowledge of global fraud trends to understand why strong ethics and controls are essential.