THE ROLE OF AN AUDITOR IN COMBATING FRAUD IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATION

ABSTRACT This study investigates the role of auditors in the detection, prevention/combating and reporting of fraud in a business organization. Data were obtained from 184 respondents in Nigeria. The findings revealed that the respondents are very concerned about the problem of fraud. In addition, the respondents placed very high expectation on auditors’ duties on fraud prevention and detection. This perception is in contrast with the stated primary objective of an audit, as stipulated in ISA 200, which merely required auditors to form an opinion on the financial statements, but not of fraud detection. Keywords: Auditors, fraud, detection, prevention  
  TABLE OF CONTENT TITLE APPROVAL PAGE DEDICATION ACKNOWLEDGEMENT   ABSTRACT TABLE OF CONTENT
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION STATEMENT OF PROBLEM PURPOSE OF STUDY SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF STUDY
CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW  2.1 FRAUD  2.2 AUDITORS’ RESPONSIBILITIES IN FRAUD DETECTION  2.3 EMPIRICAL STUDIES ON FRAUD DETECTION
CHAPTER THREE 3.1 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 
CHAPTER FOUR 4.1 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 
CHAPTER FIVE 5.1 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS  REFERENCES 
  INTRODUCTION  That an auditor has the responsibility for the prevention, detection and reporting of fraud, other illegal acts and errors is one of the most controversial issues in auditing, and has been one of the most frequently debated areas amongst auditors, politicians, media, regulators and the public (Gay et al 1997). This debate has been especially highlighted by the collapse of both small and big corporations across the globe. The auditing profession in Nigeria has caught the media’s attention following financial scandals in some of the Nigerian banks such as Intercontinental Bank, Oceanic Bank, Afribank, and Bank PHB among others. There seems presently to be a misconception that auditors’ duties are largely the preventing, detecting and reporting of fraud, for example, Idris (2009). The aim of this paper is to identify financial report users’ perceptions of the extent of fraud in Nigeria, and to determine their perceptions of the auditor’s responsibilities in detecting fraud and the performance of related audit procedures. The paper also aims to ascertain whether the report users’ perceptions of auditors’ responsibilities on fraud are consistent with those of the auditing profession as expressed in auditing standards in Nigeria.