Question

Previous chapters have described the technological capabilities that Bill Wiley wants for servicing his customers. One of the problems that Bill has is that his company is very small, so he cannot afford to develop any special-purpose equipment or even sophisticated software.

Given this limitation, Bill’s need for advanced technological capabilities comes at an opportune time. Equipment manufacturers are developing equipment with advanced telecommunications capabilities, and freelance software developers are producing software applications—many of which provide the capabilities that Bill needs. The one caveat is that because this will be a live production system, it needs to be reliable, stable, error-free, dependable, and maintainable.

Let us review some of the required capabilities of the new system, which has been described in previous chapters:

-Customers
-Customers can request package pickup via the Internet.
-Customers can check the status of packages via the Internet.
-Customers can print mailing labels at their offices.

Drivers
-Drivers can view their schedules via a portable digital device while on their routes.
-Drivers can update the status of packages while on their routes.
-Drivers can allow customers to "sign" for packages that are delivered.
-The system "knows" where the driver is on his route and can send updates in real time.
-Drivers can accept payments and record them on the system.

Bill Wiley (management)
-Bill can record package pickups from the warehouse.
-Bill can schedule delivery/pickup runs.
-Bill can do accounting, billing, etc.
-Bill can access the company network from his home.

Case Questions : What kind of fraud is possible in this scenario? By the customer? By the truck driver? By collaboration between system users? What steps should Bill take to minimize the opportunity for fraud?

Answer 1

In this scenario, there are possibilities for fraud by the customer, the truck driver, or collaboration between system users. To minimize the opportunity for fraud, Bill should implement strong authentication, audit trails, monitoring systems, and training programs.

Step-by-step explanation:

In this scenario, several types of fraud are possible:

1. Fraud by the customer: Customers may be able to falsely claim that a package was not delivered or manipulate the system to receive multiple packages without paying for them.
2. Fraud by the truck driver: Drivers can potentially manipulate package status, accept payments without recording them, or collaborate with customers to steal packages.
3. Fraud by collaboration between system users: Customers and drivers can collude to deceive the system and engage in fraudulent activities, such as tampering with package status or payments.

To minimize the opportunity for fraud, Bill should take the following steps:

1. Implement strong authentication and authorization mechanisms to ensure that only authorized users can access and manipulate the system.
2. Implement audit trails and monitoring systems to detect and track any suspicious or fraudulent activities.
3. Regularly train and educate both customers and drivers about the risks and consequences of fraud, as well as the proper use of the system.