Financial Crime World

THAILAND’S FRAUD LANDSCAPE: PROTECTING THE PERIMETER IN A RISING TIDE OF FINANCIAL CRIME

COVID-19 Pandemic Exposes Vulnerabilities in Thailand’s Business Landscape

Bangkok, Thailand - The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a significant shift in the business landscape, creating new opportunities for fraudsters to exploit vulnerabilities. According to PwC’s Global Economic Crime and Fraud Survey 2022 - Thailand Report, nearly one in four (22%) of Thai companies experienced fraud, corruption, or other economic/financial crime within the last 24 months.

Emerging Threats in Thailand’s Business Environment

  • Cybercrime: The report highlights the increased risk of cybercrime, with 24% of Thai respondents experiencing an increased cybercrime risk.
  • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting fraud: Although more than half of Thai respondents have processes to identify and manage potential ESG risks, the manipulation of ESG reports either by employees or third parties remains a key concern.
  • Supply chain fraud: Less than 10% of Thai respondents are proactively monitoring supply chain risks, making this an excellent target for fraud.

Falling Behind in Risk Management and Compliance

While only 37% of Thai respondents have a designated risk management/compliance function for responding to fraud risks, compared to 43% globally, the report notes that Thailand is falling behind in this aspect. Less than 30% of Thai respondents have increased the size of their enterprise risk management/compliance functions in response to emerging threats.

Recommendations for Enhancing Fraud Risk Management

  • Understand the end-to-end lifecycle of customer-facing products: Businesses can take several measures, including understanding the end-to-end lifecycle of customer-facing products.
  • Strike a balance between user experience and fraud controls: Striking the proper balance between user experience and fraud controls is essential for effective risk management.
  • Orchestrate data to track end-to-end lifecycle of users and generate meaningful alerts: Businesses can orchestrate data to track end-to-end lifecycle of users and generate meaningful alerts.

Conclusion

By prioritizing investments in risk management and compliance, Thai businesses can better protect themselves from economic crime and maintain trust with their stakeholders. As fraudsters become more complex in their attacks, it’s critical that businesses focus on investments to better protect themselves from economic crime.