ACFE Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft

Question 1

A victim is told they have won a lottery but must first pay 'taxes and processing fees' before receiving the prize. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

An advance-fee scheme

Answer

Advance-fee schemes require victims to pay upfront for a promised reward, loan or prize that never arrives.

Question 2

Obtaining personal information by impersonating a trusted party over the phone, for example posing as a bank employee, is known as:

Accepted Answer

Pretexting

Answer

Pretexting uses a fabricated scenario or false identity to persuade a target to reveal sensitive information.

Question 3

Which describes 'account takeover' identity theft?

Accepted Answer

A criminal gains control of a victim's existing account and changes its contact details

Answer

In account takeover, the fraudster hijacks an existing account, often by changing the address or credentials, rather than creating new accounts.

Question 4

Synthetic identity fraud involves:

Accepted Answer

Combining real and fabricated information to create a new fictitious identity

Answer

Synthetic identities blend real data (such as a genuine SSN) with fake details to build credit profiles that no single real person owns.

Question 5

A phishing email that targets a specific executive using personal details is best called:

Accepted Answer

Spear phishing

Answer

Spear phishing is a targeted phishing attack customized to a specific individual or organization, and 'whaling' refers to such attacks on senior executives.

(ACFE) Association of Certified Fraud Examiners Practice Test

(ACFE) Association of Certified Fraud Examiners Practice Test

ACFE Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft