AP Automation May Have Prevented A Loss Of $128M For Australian Businesses

In the most recent Targeting Scams Report, the ACCC states that of the astonishing $851m lost through scams in 2020, Invoice Fraud was recorded as the 3rd highest scam method contributing to $128M lost for Australian businesses. If you think this is concerning, the ACCC has stated that “Average losses so far in 2021 are more than five times higher compared to average losses in the same period last year”. It is evident that cybercriminals are continuously adapting and finding new ways to hijack details of hardworking Australian businesses, however, what if we told you that this could be easily prevented?

What is Invoice Fraud?

The Regional Australia Bank states that invoice fraud “stems from a larger cybercrime called Business Email Compromise where cybercriminals impersonate a business to trick you, an employee, customer or vendor into transferring money or sensitive information”.

Let’s use an example scenario. A business owner has received an invoice of $10,000 via email from their supplier. The owner processes this invoice however the following day, the supplier sends another invoice. The owner checks the invoice from the previous day in detail to realise although the invoices are near-identical, the bank details differ. The owner is now a victim of Invoice Fraud, as the invoice process was intercepted by scammers posing as a legitimate business. Shocking? Yes. Uncommon? Unfortunately not.

Invoice Fraud impacts businesses of all sizes and across multiple industries. Invoice Fraud frequently occurs within the Construction, Law, Real Estate, Recruitment and surprisingly within the Education industry.

How can AP Automation prevent fraud?

Businesses across Australia and New Zealand use ProSpend's AP Automation software for the vast benefits it offers around the significant reduction in costs and times involved in standard Accounting Processes. However, more and more finance leaders are understanding how AP Automation can stop fraud in its tracks. Once implementing AP Automation, finance leaders immediately experience up to 95% reduction in fraud and here’s how:

• Fraud Detection: Dedicated AP Automation tools to eliminate fraud before it happens. An example is Automatic Notifications that notify the user if invoice details have been altered from what was previously recorded (eg. Bank Account details).
• Supplier Validation: Create and manage customised multi-level workflows that are tied to both new and existing suppliers, ensuring you set the rules before payment is made.
• Audit Trails: Complete digital trail of critical expense data changes and archive files with receipt images for client-side storage.
• AI Invoice Review: Technology that identifies any discrepancies between invoice data and supporting documentation plus checks for other aspects including duplicate invoices.
• Purchase Orders: Our purchase order software allows you to control spend digitally whilst adding visibility to your invoices.

Fraud detection and prevention is only one of the many benefits AP Automation offers. Finance leaders need to take Invoice Fraud very seriously as the chances of it occurring in your organisation are high. Although Invoice Fraud occurs commonly, it is usually disguised in uncommon ways which are simple to look past within heavy manual AP processes. Whilst your organisation benefits from AP Automation through cost and time savings, implementing AP Automation will ensure your complete invoice process is thoroughly assessed through Hyperautomation AI technology, stopping fraud in its tracks and allowing you to focus on growing your business.

ProSpend is Australia’s leading Spend Management Platform that offers Smart Automation for finance teams. Through one cloud-based platform, you can easily manage expenses, supplier invoices, purchase orders and travel spend. All with budget visibility. ProSpend is 100% Australian owned & developed and is used every day by leading brands, including KFC, WWF, Best & Less, Guide Dogs, Peoplebank and many more. For those looking to better understand the benefits of automation, book your FREE savings consultation.