NCJ Number
243989
Date Published
September 2013
Length
76 pages
Annotation
This guide provides information for assisting victims of financial fraud.
Abstract
This guide was developed by the National Center for Victims of Crime and the FINRA Investor Education Foundation to provide information for assisting victims of financial fraud. The guide is intended for use by victim advocates to help them identify instances of financial fraud and how to report it to the proper authorities. The guide also contains a set of case management tools for advocates to use in setting reasonable expectations of recovery and managing the emotional trauma sustained by the victims. The information in the guide is divided into four main sections. Section 1: Laying the Foundation addresses how to use the guide and provides definitions of financial fraud, major categories of fraud, victims and perpetrators of financial fraud, and costs of financial fraud. Section 2: The Advocate's Role describes a victim-centered approach to dealing with financial fraud, identifying fraud types, setting expectations, prevention for victims, and networking. Section 3: Action Steps by Fraud Type describes action steps to take for identity theft, investment fraud, mortgage and lending fraud, and mass marketing and other types of fraud. Section 4: Resources contains information for obtaining additional assistance for different types of fraud as well as a listing of local agency resources.