What is Forensic Accounting?
Forensic accounting is the act of analyzing financial documents, assets, and data to provide accurate reports for court as evidence in cases such as fraud. While a lot of it is combing through documents, a forensic accountant must also be able to meet with those being investigated and work with them to better understand how the numbers all add up.
What are the requirements to be a forensic accountant?
A forensic accountant must pass the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam in their state and must pass an additional forensic accountant certification exam provided by many professional accounting organizations. While there is not one specific credential to obtain for forensic accounting, the FBI only recognizes a select few such as the Certified in Financial Forensics (CFF) credential provided by the AICPA.
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) is a professional organization that is nationally recognized for assisting accountants. They provide information on how to obtain CPA certification and they administer the test for CFF certification. Their website is http://aicpa.org
This article from a CPA on The CPA Journal provides a case study that shows exactly what it’s like to be a forensic accountant. Very much like detectives, they interview people as well as look for minuscule details within the financial documents of the company that may have been easily glanced over by the average person.
This McGraw-Hill book is a very helpful guide for passing the CPA exam, which is the first step towards becoming a forensic accountant.