Internal Control Systems Efficiency in Fraud Prevention in Large Enterprises in Poland

N/ASince occupational fraud and abuse became a subject of Polish scientific research later than in other countries, awareness of this phenomenon and its perception were highly influenced by pioneering foreign authors. Consequently, the lack of definitions and theories based on research, analyses, and studies carried out entirely in Poland is evident. Therefore, characteristics of typical occupational abuse in Poland-based enterprises may differ from the widely accepted ‘mainstream’ definitions and theories. Hence, it was critical to investigate the phenomenon of occupational abuse in the Polish economic environment. Poland-specific occupational abuse involves fraudulent actions taken by members of organizations and abuse of their positions aimed at enriching themselves through deliberate abuse or misuse of the organization’s resources or property, which have a negative impact on other em-ployees, companies or their business environment. A study of the effectiveness of anti-fraud systems implemented in Poland-based enterprises was carried out to identify factors contributing to fraud prevention effectiveness and present a model control system. Furthermore, the study discussed existing threats (such as weaknesses of the current solutions), recommended improvements in those areas, analyzed how to detect and counteract abuse, and presented innovative proprietary tools, including a red flag list, a fraud checklist, a model crime counteracting system and a fraud prevention checklist. The implementation of recommendations presented in this study will strengthen internal control and ensure more effective prevention of employee, managerial and owner fraud.N/