ABSTRACT
This research work aims at determining the role of information and communication technology in detecting fraud in the Nigerian banking system. The banking institution which has integrity and trust as its hallmark has been exposed to various forms of fraud and various means employed in defrauding banks. Fraud derails the society’s integrity and value among the committee of nations and in effect, affects the level of trust. The banking sector has been the cornerstone of economic and financial mainstay of any nation, hence the need for study of the role and the effectiveness of information and communication technology in fraud detection in the banking industry. First Bank of Nigeria Pie, Enugu metropolis was used as a case study. The research work treated the causes of fraud in Nigerian banks, forms of bank frauds, Effects and consequences of fraud in first bank of Nigeria plc, the information and communication technology and fraud detection in banks and Fraud control measures in banks.
The methodology adopted in this study is the survey research design%. There were interactions with bank staff of various cadres with structured questionnaire to know their own opinion. 400 questionnaires were administered of which 320 were duly completed and returned. Some of the findings from the research work reveal that lack of staff motivation has an effect on the incidence of fraud in Nigerian banks. It also reveals that the introduction of ICT into the banking industry has reduced the incidence of fraud in Nigerian banks. Further findings reveal that the Nigerian banking laws are not adequate for fraud control in banks.
Based on the findings of this study, recommendations made are the adoption of computer aids as tool for fraud prevention and control; banks should employ highly sophisticated security gadgets in their banks, like surveillance TV systems, on — the- spot photographing of customers etc. Proper reviewing of laws relating to fraud should be encouraged and stern penalties that commensurate with any offence committed should be embarked on.
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY
Historically, fraud has always existed with the nature and life of mankind. There is a general consensus amongst criminologist that fraud is caused by the elements called “WOE”- Will, Opportunity and Exit. i.e., the will to commit the fraud by the individual the opportunity to execute the fraud and the exit which is the escape from the sanctions against successful or attempted fraud.
Fraud is a global phenomenon. It is not unique in any sector of the economy or peculiar to Nigeria. The level of fraud in the present day Nigeria has assumed an epidemic dimension. It has eaten deep into every aspect of our life to the extent that a three year old child talks about yahoo mail or 419, newly discovered sobriquet for advanced free fraud that is hunting us as a nation. Nigeria, with all of its natural and human resources, tethers on the brink of destruction because of fraud. Much of what we do is “cutting leaves” instead of dealing with the root problem. Generally, fraud takes its root from the human heart. It is an axiom that the heart is deceitful above all things and is desperately wicked.
Fraud is the number one enemy of the business world, no company is immune to it and it is in all works of life, it is becoming predominant in the banking industry, as banks are now persistent targets of frauds. Nwankwo (1991) said that there is no where fraud is more serious than in banking. It is the biggest cause of bank failure. The fear is now rife that the increasing wave of fraud in the financial institutions in recent years, if not arrested might pose certain threats to stability and the survival of individual financial institution and the performance of the industry as a whole and no area of the economy is immune from fraudsters and even the banking system. Fraud if not checked might cause run on in the banking sector.
Fraud together with its sister white-collar crimes which came into being later in the 19th and 20th century inter alia corruption, money laundering, tax evasion, externalization of foreign currency to itemize just a few have stood as potent weapons capable of hemorrhaging the entire world economies particularly the banking sector because of its high risk factor.
Since fraud is carried out over a period of time, a minor one at the initial stage snowballs into a sizeable one over a period of time. However, the incidence of fraud has become a nightmare to the bankers who are particularly concerned, not only because it is on the increase, but also it acquires sophistication and tries outwitting every new technology. In the past years, cases of frauds in banks have been on the increase with each year recording staggering figures, even though most of the reported cases are essentially different types of fraud, An example is defrauding a bank using a genuine account of an employee who is the defrauder.
Another one is through the use of fictitious account; also, fraud is carried out with the aid of an employee’s friend. Similarly this unhoiy act is sometimes done using an account of a third party that depends on an employee-insider to perpetrate the cnrne.
Fraud is a universal phenomenon which has been in existence for so long. Its magnitude cannot the security team designed to prevent it. Its management has become a central point in banking like the management of risk because of the above fadts. Fraud and its management have been the precipitating factor in the distress of banks, and as much as various measures have been taken to minimize the incidence of fraud, it still rises by the day because fraudsters always device tactical ways of committing fraud. This has become a point of great attention in the banking sector as well as every organization in Nigeria.
Technology is invented by man to manipulate his social and physical environments. The sociology of science and technology made us to understand that, technology came with both manifest and latent intents. The manipulation of computer and other information and communication technology (ICT) to detect fraud in banks gives more insight into the manifest function of technological revolution. When computer was invented, the intention of its inventors is to hasten data processing with effortless ease. That it has been doing efficiently by giving timely and accurate information. The ability of computer to control manipulations......
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Item Type: Project Material | Size: 98 pages | Chapters: 1-5
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