Final answer:
David's act of altering financial records to conceal the theft of employer's funds is categorized as embezzlement, a form of corporate crime that involves the abuse of a position of trust.
Step-by-step explanation:
David’s act of stealing money from his employer by altering the accounting records after the funds have been received and recorded is best categorized as embezzlement. Embezzlement is a type of corporate crime that involves taking money or property by a person who is in a position of trust, such as an employee or agent. Unlike shoplifting or skimming, embezzlement typically involves altering financial records to hide the theft, which matches David’s actions of changing the company books to cover up the missing funds. In this situation, David's behavior does not constitute skimming, which involves taking money before it is recorded, nor does it resemble a phony disbursement, which would imply creating fake payments or reimbursements.