Fraud By The Numbers Series

  • Whistleblowers had tremendous victories in 2023—and their numbers are rising

    Last year in Fraud by the Numbers, we began our look at the 2022 U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) annual statistics on settlements and judgments under the False Claims Act by observing that the government has been recovering less money through qui tam actions than it did several years ago. This year, we are pleased…

  • The Impact of Cyber Risks on U.S. Markets and Investors

    Cyber-attacks and data breaches can wreak havoc on companies and investors alike including financial, legal, operational, and reputational damage. As an illustration, on July 12, 2024, AT&T announced an update regarding the massive customer data breach, which included information that “was illegally downloaded from our workspace on a third-party cloud platform.” In the wake of…

  • Breaking Down the Government’s Estimate of Fraud

    Welcome to The Anti-Fraud Coalition’s Fourth Annual Fraud By The Numbers! In years past we have used concrete numbers from budgets, recoveries under various whistleblower programs, and anything quantifiable we could find to show how fraud impacts us. This year, for the first time ever, we actually have the federal government’s estimate of how much…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 30

    Over the last thirty days, Fraud By The Numbers has spotlighted fraud schemes targeting government dollars and the financial markets. These 30 blog posts have evidenced the fraud-fighting impact of whistleblowers and whistleblower reward programs. The numbers reveal the truth about fraud. Indeed, some trends have emerged. But what trend stands out? The answer: Relatively…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 29

    Fiscal Year 2022 saw the most new cases filed under the False Claims Act in the Law’s modern history. Does the DOJ have the resources to handle the job? One aspect of the Department of Justice’s efforts to fight fraud stands out as being far more active in recent years. DOJ is now initiating more…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 28

    Opponents of the False Claims Act (FCA) and other whistleblower programs often deride whistleblowers as disgruntled employees or those just looking to make a buck, but the fact is that whistleblowers uncovering fraud on the government and financial markets do not stand to profit anywhere near as much as the corporations behind the fraud schemes…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 27

    In his recent dissent in U.S. ex rel. Polansky v. Executive Health Resources, Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that qui tam actions, allowing private individuals to represent the government in litigation, might be unconstitutional. Seizing upon Justice Thomas’ speculation, False Claims Act defendants have intensified constitutional challenges to the qui tam provisions even though the issue…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 26

    In the thirty years from 1993 through 2022, False Claims Act cases filed by whistleblowers have returned $50.1 billion to the Treasury.[1] That’s great news, but you probably wonder: what could the Government do with that money? In fact, $50 billion can do a lot, and there are a few things that have received bi-partisan…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 25

    A common refrain we hear from opponents of the False Claims Act (FCA) is that there are just too many FCA lawsuits, and that whistleblowers are running around filing frivolous suits just to vex defendants. However, a look at the numbers shows how far from true that is. Qui tam relators and their counsel only…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 24

    Earlier this year, the Internal Revenue Service Whistleblower Office released its Annual Report with an encouraging word from the program’s director. In the report, Director Hinman reiterated the IRS’s support for whistleblowers, and said that the agency “uses increasingly sophisticated data analytics and other methods to detect non-compliance with tax laws, but we can’t find…