The SFO deals with many different types of economic crime. To help identify what types are being committed we have developed a taxonomy of fraud. The taxonomy is now being used by the law enforcement community across the UK to give a common understanding and classification of the main elements of fraud. It allows us to understand how persistent and varied the threats are to all of us.
Here are just a few examples:
Corruption - the abuse of public or private office for personal gain. There are various forms of corruption including bribery and nepotism.
Investment Fraud - the targeting of institutions and corporations by fund managers to make financial investments that promise very high returns but often turn out to be 'too good to be true'.
Watch out for fund managers who mislead investigators by making false disclosures failing to provide full information about the investment opportunity.
Share Sales, Bonds or Boiler Rooms - the cold calling of victims by fake stockbrokers who persuade them to buy shares or bonds that are worthless or nonexistent.
