Fraud is a growing concern for businesses across the world and KSA is no exception. For Saudi companies, strong internal audit practices are a frontline defence that protect assets reputation and stakeholder trust. Well structured internal audits guided by experienced consulting services internal audit teams can both detect existing schemes and prevent future losses by strengthening controls and improving governance. Recent regional figures show investment in fraud prevention technology and forensic services rising as organisations recognise that prevention is more cost effective than response.
Why KSA companies must prioritise fraud reduction now
Saudi Arabia is experiencing rapid business expansion with a surge in new company registrations and increased project spending across public and private sectors. This growth creates new fraud opportunities especially in procurement payroll and digital channels. Global and regional surveys show that procurement misappropriation and cyber enabled schemes are among the most common threats. For example a major MENA study found that 55 percent of fraud involves collusion and that asset misappropriation accounts for over half of reported cases. At the same time the fraud detection market in Saudi Arabia reached around USD 469.9 million in 2025 indicating strong demand for tools and expertise. Organisations that partner with consulting services internal audit providers can adapt faster to these complex risks.
Core internal audit steps to reduce fraud
Below are practical high impact steps internal audit teams should implement to reduce fraud risk in KSA companies. Each step includes how consulting services internal audit firms typically support execution and measurable outcomes to track progress.
1. Perform a focused enterprise wide fraud risk assessment
Begin with a clear picture of where your organisation is vulnerable. A modern fraud risk assessment examines business processes, people systems and supply chains to prioritise risk areas. Leading firms recommend conducting these assessments annually or when major organisational changes occur. A documented assessment enables targeted controls rather than wasting resources on generic measures. Many companies in the region report improved detection rates after completing enterprise wide assessments.
What consulting services internal audit teams do
• Map key fraud scenarios and quantify exposure
• Score risks using likelihood and impact
• Recommend priority controls and monitoring strategies
Key outcome
• Percentage of high risk processes with agreed remedial plans
2. Strengthen procurement and vendor controls
Procurement is a frequent fraud gateway in large scale projects. Internal audit should require strict vendor onboarding segregation of duties and centralized approvals. Regular vendor due diligence should include beneficial ownership checks and performance reviews.
How an external partner helps
consulting services internal audit providers often run third party due diligence programmes and continuous monitoring to flag abnormal vendor behaviour early.
Key outcome
• Reduction in procurement exceptions and duplicate payments
3. Improve segregation of duties and access controls
Many frauds occur because a single person can approve, record and pay transactions. Enforcing segregation of duties across finance, HR and IT reduces opportunity. Role based access controls paired with periodic access reviews are essential especially when ERP systems are in use.
What to measure
• Number of critical access conflicts resolved per quarter
4. Deploy proactive analytics and continuous monitoring
Static audits will miss many fast moving schemes. Continuous transaction monitoring using analytics can surface anomalies such as round sum payments, duplicate invoice patterns or unusual supplier relationships. In 2025 organisations increased adoption of analytics and AI tools to spot suspicious patterns earlier.
How consulting services internal audit help
External teams can design dashboards and analytics rules so internal teams receive high quality alerts rather than noise.
Key outcome
• Time to detection measured in days rather than months
5. Strengthen whistleblowing and reporting channels
Whistleblowers are still one of the most effective fraud detectors. Establish secure confidential and easily accessible hotlines and ensure reports are investigated promptly and impartially. Building a culture where employees trust reporting mechanisms reduces concealment and speeds resolution.
Measurement
• Percentage of actionable reports that lead to investigations
6. Conduct regular forensic readiness and investigations training
Internal audit teams and key business managers should receive training on red flags evidence preservation and how to work with forensic teams. Forensic readiness ensures that when an incident occurs the organisation can preserve evidence and limit damage to people and operations.
How advisory firms assist
Many Advisory Companies in Saudi Arabia provide scenario based workshops and simulated exercises that prepare teams to act quickly and correctly during an incident.
Key outcome
• Mean time to preserve evidence following a credible allegation
7. Review executive incentives and conflict of interest policies
Misaligned incentives can unintentionally encourage unethical choices. Regular reviews of incentive structures and transparent conflict of interest declarations minimise pressure points that lead to fraud.
Key outcome
• Proportion of leadership with up to date conflict declarations
8. Leverage digital identity and payment security for e commerce and payroll
As Saudi commerce digitalises payment workflows and identity systems must keep pace. Use multi factor authentication payroll reconciliation and payment tokenisation to defend against cyber enabled fraud that can quickly escalate to material losses.
Key outcome
• Incidence of unauthorised payments or account takeovers
Measuring effectiveness and benchmarking
Audit metrics must be quantifiable and linked to business value. Useful metrics include percentage of risk rated processes, remediated number of suspicious transactions detected, average time to investigate and loss recovered. Global surveys suggest that organisations which complete enterprise wide fraud risk assessments and implement continuous monitoring report higher detection rates and lower average loss per incident. In the Middle East many companies reported that misappropriation of assets remains the top type of fraud but that increased use of analytics reduced time to discovery in 2024 and 2025.
Practical roadmap for KSA companies
Step 1 Conduct a rapid fraud risk assessment in the top five value chains.
Step 2 Remediate top three control gaps within 90 days.
Step 3 Deploy continuous monitoring rules for high risk transactions.
Step 4 Implement secure whistleblowing and run a staff awareness campaign.
Step 5 Engage periodic external reviews from Advisory Companies in Saudi Arabia to validate design and operating effectiveness. These periodic external reviews also aid regulatory compliance and demonstrate good governance to stakeholders.
Regulatory and market context in 2025
Saudi regulators and financial institutions are actively strengthening anti-fraud frameworks. For regulated entities the Saudi Central Bank and other authorities provide counter fraud guidance and expect firms to have resilient controls. The market for fraud detection and prevention solutions is expanding rapidly with a 2025 market valuation for Saudi Arabia near USD 469.9 million reflecting investments in analytics identity and case management. This means companies must be prepared to both adopt technology and develop the people and process capabilities to use it effectively.
Common pitfalls to avoid
Avoid over relying on technology without governance. Analytics generate alerts but human judgement is needed to investigate and escalate appropriately. Avoid fragmented vendor checks and inconsistent access reviews. Finally avoid assuming that fraud is a back office issue alone. Senior leadership must be engaged to make fraud reduction an enterprise priority.
Role of external advisors and how to choose them
Selecting the right partner matters. Look for Advisory Companies in Saudi Arabia that combine local regulatory knowledge, strong forensic skills and experience implementing continuous monitoring programmes. Proven track records with procurement forensic investigations and ERP controls are important selection criteria. Independent external reviews also add credibility during regulator enquiries or investor due diligence.
Second last thought
Fraud prevention is not a single project. It is an ongoing cycle of risk assessment control design monitoring and improvement. Engage both internal teams and specialist partners to build resilient systems that match the scale and complexity of your operations. Advisory Companies in Saudi Arabia can provide the combined local insight and technical capability needed to implement sustainable fraud reduction programmes.
Call to action
If you are in KSA and ready to reduce fraud exposure, start with a focused enterprise wide fraud risk assessment and a quick gap analysis of your procurement and payment controls. Reach out to insight advisory for a pragmatic assessment and an executable roadmap tailored to Saudi regulatory requirements. partnering with experienced providers delivers measurable reductions in detection time and potential loss.
Finance Advisory 