, FOR3705 Assignment 2
Semester 2 2025
DUE September 2025
Use this document as a guide and for references to answer your assignment
QUESTION 1
Explain how the behavioural profile could fill information gaps in a financial
profile. [5]
A financial profile typically records a person’s or organisation’s income,
expenditures, assets, liabilities, and net worth. While this is essential for
understanding financial capacity and patterns of wealth, it often leaves significant
gaps—especially when investigating fraud, misconduct, or hidden activity. This is
where a behavioural profile can add depth.
1. Contextualising Financial Anomalies
Financial records may show unusual transactions, but on their own they do
not explain intent or motivation. A behavioural profile—covering lifestyle
habits, personality traits, stressors, and pressures—helps examiners interpret
why certain anomalies occur. For instance, overspending beyond visible
income can be understood in light of gambling behaviour, substance abuse, or
lavish lifestyle expectations.
2. Detecting Hidden Assets and Income
A financial profile may be incomplete due to deliberate concealment (e.g.,
undisclosed accounts, offshore holdings). Behavioural patterns such as
frequent travel, unexplained luxury purchases, or known associations with
high-risk groups may point to financial sources not visible in official records.
3. Assessing Fraud Motivation and Risk
The “fraud triangle” highlights pressure, opportunity, and rationalisation.
Financial records alone show opportunity and sometimes pressure (like debt),
but they rarely reveal rationalisation. Behavioural insights—such as an
employee expressing resentment, entitlement, or rational justifications for
bending rules—fill this motivational gap.
Semester 2 2025
DUE September 2025
Use this document as a guide and for references to answer your assignment
QUESTION 1
Explain how the behavioural profile could fill information gaps in a financial
profile. [5]
A financial profile typically records a person’s or organisation’s income,
expenditures, assets, liabilities, and net worth. While this is essential for
understanding financial capacity and patterns of wealth, it often leaves significant
gaps—especially when investigating fraud, misconduct, or hidden activity. This is
where a behavioural profile can add depth.
1. Contextualising Financial Anomalies
Financial records may show unusual transactions, but on their own they do
not explain intent or motivation. A behavioural profile—covering lifestyle
habits, personality traits, stressors, and pressures—helps examiners interpret
why certain anomalies occur. For instance, overspending beyond visible
income can be understood in light of gambling behaviour, substance abuse, or
lavish lifestyle expectations.
2. Detecting Hidden Assets and Income
A financial profile may be incomplete due to deliberate concealment (e.g.,
undisclosed accounts, offshore holdings). Behavioural patterns such as
frequent travel, unexplained luxury purchases, or known associations with
high-risk groups may point to financial sources not visible in official records.
3. Assessing Fraud Motivation and Risk
The “fraud triangle” highlights pressure, opportunity, and rationalisation.
Financial records alone show opportunity and sometimes pressure (like debt),
but they rarely reveal rationalisation. Behavioural insights—such as an
employee expressing resentment, entitlement, or rational justifications for
bending rules—fill this motivational gap.
