22. The internal auditor suspects a disbursements fraud in which an unknown employee(s) is submitting and approving invoices for payment. Before discussing the potential fraud with management, the internal auditor decides to gather additional information. Which of the following procedures is most helpful in providing the additional information?
A. Use software to develop a list of vendors with post office box numbers or other unusual features. Select a sample of those items and trace to supporting documents such as receiving reports.
B. Select a sample of payments made during the year and investigate each one for approval.
C. Select a sample of receiving reports representative of the period under investigation and trace to approved payment. Note items not properly processed.
D. Take a sample of invoices received during the past month, examine to determine whether properly authorized for payment, and trace to underlying documents.
Answer (A) is correct.
REQUIRED: The most helpful procedure related to a disbursements fraud.
DISCUSSION: A disbursements fraud may be accomplished through the use of fictitious vendors. Investigating vendors with suspicious characteristics appropriately focuses on payees as sources of additional information.
Answer (B) is incorrect. The individual perpetrating the fraud may have been in a position to obtain approvals.
Answer (C) is incorrect. The problem is more likely to be with payments for which no valid support exists.
Answer (D) is incorrect. Sampling invoices for the past month is not as effective as investigating suspicious vendors. It focuses only on a short period of time, and does not emphasize the items most likely to be fraudulent.