Brian Loughman, EY Americas FIDS Leader, commented, "Our clients are continually challenged with bribery, corruption and cyber breaches while at the same time balancing the effectiveness of their compliance monitoring programs.  Companies and their boards are seeking next generation technology applications to assist with these challenges.  These solutions, though, must be tailored and scalable to address the sectors and geographies where they do business." 

FIDS has identified five key themes that companies should incorporate in their planning in 2015.

As 2014 comes to a close, the impact of cyber breaches continues to show that organizations and their Boards must become more aggressive in developing response plans to these persistent threats.  A key component for strengthening an organization's preparedness will be increased awareness of the variety of threat actors - including "hactivists" and nation states.  Regulatory bodies expect companies to provide greater transparency through more robust disclosures and to undertake actions to buttress defenses and controls. For the majority of those surveyed in EY's 13^th Global Fraud Survey who did not view cybercrime as a significant risk, much work obviously remains to be done.

Increased focus by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice on enforcement actions against individual executives is putting greater pressure on organizations to demand ethical corporate cultures and to develop a more detailed understanding of their anti-corruption compliance programs.  A critical element of these programs is a robust, global third-party vetting process, continually evaluating the conduct and political exposure of joint venture partners, agents and distributors, among others.    

EY's 2014 Global Forensic Data Analytics Survey found that 74% of respondents indicated that Forensic Data Analytics can play a critical role in mitigating corporate bribery, a top fraud risk, and 63% of respondents agree that they need to do more to improve their anti-fraud/anti-bribery procedures, including incorporating FDA.  FDA will enable legal, compliance and internal audit professionals to be more effective by allowing them to analyze greater volumes of data from disparate sources in a much more timely fashion.

4. Regulated industries: Financial Services

5. Regulated industries: Life Sciences & Healthcare:

Dealing with complex issues of fraud, regulatory compliance and business disputes can detract from efforts to succeed. Better management of fraud risk and compliance exposure is a critical business priority – no matter what the industry sector is.

Our more than 3,200 fraud investigation and dispute professionals around the world bring the analytical and technical skills needed to quickly and effectively conduct financial and other investigations and gather and analyse electronic evidence. Working closely with you and your legal advisors, we assemble the right multidisciplinary and culturally aligned team, and bring an objective approach and fresh perspective to these challenging situations, wherever you are in the world.

And because we understand that you need a tailored service as much as consistent methodologies, we work to give you the benefit of our broad sector experience, our deep subject matter knowledge and the latest insights from our work worldwide.

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

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This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP, a member firm of EY serving clients in the US.