Fraud Risk Assessment Template

A fraud risk assessment is only useful when it names specific scenarios and links them to controls and a response. This template helps you document fraud scenarios, incentives, opportunities, controls and response in one working paper.

Use it in fraud risk workshops, during engagement planning or when documenting a review of management's assessment. The header records process, assessment period, facilitator, participants, business owner and review date. Part 1 captures each fraud scenario or scheme, who could perpetrate it, and the incentive, pressure or opportunity involved, followed by exposure and controls: potential impact, preventive and detective controls, and control gaps or override risk. Part 2 records the response: residual risk, the analytics or audit response, and the owner and action. A working table tracks items with owner, due date, status and evidence notes.

The worked example describes an employee who creates a fictitious vendor and directs payment to a related bank account, with vendor-to-employee bank-match analytics and maker-checker control as the key response. The completion page provides a final quality check, sign-off, the final conclusion and outstanding follow-up, so high-risk scenarios can be carried into your work program.