“Information is a source of learning. But unless it is organised, processed, and available to the right people in a format for decision making, it is a burden, not a benefit.” ~ William Pollard

The simple fact is we have access to far too much information and as human beings, most of us will quickly tire of wading through pages of search engine results. That’s why Investigation Engine was created, we want our clients to see the wood for the trees. Here are just some examples of how the system will assist in terms of time efficiencies, data quality and business protection.

Money laundering is a financial crime where a criminal, or a network of criminals endeavours to obfuscate the source of money gained from their illicit activities. This could involve human trafficking, tax evasion, drug dealing, terrorist financing and corruption.

There are multiple ways in which money can be laundered and it is important to ensure that you avoid situations whereby your business may become unwittingly involved in criminal activity. One means of achieving this is by ensuring you conduct due diligence prior to entering into a relationship with a customer.

Find out from our list below why Due Diligence is important to these sectors and how Investigation Engine can help protect you.

Accountants

Accountants are crucial in the fight against financial crime. Money launderers and those that fund terrorist activities will seek to obfuscate illicit transactions through seemingly legitimate businesses. Hence it is important to establish robust AML compliance programs that include policies for identifying and reporting suspicious transactions. As gatekeepers of financial transactions, accountants are uniquely positioned to detect anomalies that may indicate illegal activity.

Of the 408 supervised businesses fined by the UK HMRC between 1 April and 30 September 2023, a total of 105 were Accountancy Service Providers, fines of ASP’s in this period amounted to £371,485. You are able to view the types of fines and penalties that have been levied at this link.

How can Investigation Engine help businesses in this sector? – The system can verify your customers passport, ensure that they are not subject to sanctions are not Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) and take you through a check list of important regulatory matters so you can more comprehensively assess their risks.

You are also able to download records of your searches and the risk assessment, upon which you can enter any mitigation measures or decisions you have taken, something that is vital when demonstrating regulatory compliance.

Estate agents

Property purchases are viewed by money launderers as lucrative and where controls are seen as weak or ineffective they will exploit them to the full.

In the United Kingdom it is His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs that oversees the sectoral compliance of estate agents. Relevant businesses must comply with the Regulations. They must not carry out Estate Agency or Letting Agency work if they are not registered with HMRC.

Failure to comply with the law can lead to imprisonment, fines, loss of licences and reputational damage.

In April 2024 for example, Accountancy Daily reported on a HMRC report that detailed failures with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations from 1 April 2023 to 30 September 2023 which showed that 408 businesses were fined £2,277,893 with charges ranging from £1,350 to a maximum penalty of £52,000.

How can Investigation Engine help businesses in this sector? – The system can verify your customers passport, ensure that they are not subject to sanctions are not Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) and take you through a check list of important regulatory matters so you can more comprehensively assess their risks.

You are also able to download records of your searches and the risk assessment, upon which you can enter any mitigation measures or decisions you have taken, something that is vital when demonstrating regulatory compliance.

Law Firms

Like the property sector, law firms are vulnerable to exploitation my those engaged in money laundering. For example being part of the chain for property purchases during conveyancing, they may act for foreign clients or those who are politically exposed. Once again a comprehensive risk assessment is required in order to avoid the prospect of a failure to comply with the law.

The Legal Sector Affinity Group (LSAG) is made up of both regulatory and representative bodies for legal services in the UK. It has produced guidance on the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations, which for firms supervised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) for AML now constitutes official guidance.

The SRA has the power to inspect regulated firms and where failings are identified they will take action. For example, between 26 June 2017 and 30 January 2020 (a period of over two and a half years), Edell Jones & Lessers, failed to have in place a documented assessment of the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing. They were fined a total of £3,711 plus costs by the SRA following a desk based review. You can read more at this link.

How could Investigation Engine have helped in this situation? – Investigation Engine has integrated client/customer risk assessments. Once searches are complete the user can decide whether to progress through a series of questions. A downloadable risk profile is generated by the system and the report allows for entries in respect of mitigations and decisions.

Recruitment agencies

The importance of screening employees or potential employees should not be understated. There are countless examples of lies, fake documentation and references being used to secure positions. For example,

In July 2024 a woman was found guilty of fraud after she had gained employment as a senior nurse in a unit for sick and premature babies. She claimed to be a highly qualified neonatal nurse, an Army combat medic who had been shot at twice in Afghanistan and possessed a raft of clinical and academic qualifications.

In April 2024 The Times newspaper reported that the costs of staff theft has risen to £3.3 billion a year, compared with £4.7 billion for shoplifting, and now accounts for 40 per cent of all retail theft.

How could Investigation Engine have helped in this situation? – Investigation Engine is pre-configured to scour the Internet for adverse information and it returns relevant results quickly. Users are able to review the returns and select items for further research, we also offer an employee risk assessment for this sector.

Investigations

Good investigations thrive on the best quality information. Unfortunately the Internet is awash with far too much and this can overwhelm an investigator, often described as ‘drinking from a fire hose’ it makes the process inefficient and time consuming.

How does Investigation Engine help in this situation? – The platform is pre-configured with adverse terms to save endless keywords, but we also allow flexibility within the search for the user to adapt and refine what they find. In addition the sources we use are credible and verified.

The list of applications is endless and remember we can offer a completely customised solution for your business or organisation. Feel free to book a call to discuss your needs here.