Like many, I fell into fraud investigation and then insurance by chance. A reluctant regulator after leaving university, I found my aptitude lay in spotting patterns in data — insider trading, market manipulation, and trading abuse — rather than the oversight of compliance regulations.

With a burgeoning interest in fraud, I secured a role as an entry-level investigator in the world of corporate fraud investigation. With a natural comfort in using data, I quickly developed skills in those early days of proactive fraud detection and analytics. While those skills were honed in detecting bribery, corruption, occupational fraud, and embezzlement, it was insurance that created wider opportunity.

First, as a technical subject-matter expert, then through leadership development, and ultimately accountability for strategy.

While my personal path may be unusual, I’m delighted to see the clear career opportunities that now exist in insurance counter fraud — with far more varied paths than I experienced. Three aspects, in particular, stand out.

What Makes Insurance Counter Fraud Different

The breadth of roles
From policy validation to claims special investigation, and from intelligence analysts to data experts, the sector has developed a huge range of technical and managerial advancement opportunities.

Our collaborative community
Insurance stands apart for its unrivalled communication and collaboration between teams, firms, and the wider business ecosystem — sharing data, intelligence, and knowledge with a collective goal of reducing fraud.

The appetite for innovation
This is a sector that thrives on improving capability and transformation, with a now mature approach to winning on two fronts: stopping fraud while protecting — and benefiting — the genuine customer.

So while I personally fell into combating insurance fraud, there’s never been a better time or opportunity to attract, develop, and retain the next generation of counter-fraud talent.