The Only Association to Certify

CFCS Knowledge on the full-spectrum

of Financial Crime
About ACFCS

ACFCS is a leading provider of practical tools and

knowledge to help professionals improve results in
financial crime detection and prevention.

Through membership, live and online training, and

the Certified Financial Crime Specialist (CFCS)
credential, our goal is to deliver resources that
enable better performance in financial crime
compliance, investigations, regulation and
enforcement.
Financial Crime Evolution
Financial Crime Evolution
First Faces…
Now Voice…
And Video…
Certified Financial Crime Specialist

The
TheMark
Mark of Financial
of Financial
Crime Knowledge and
Crime Knowledge and
Skill
Skill
Arc of Financial Crime Why CFCS
Over the last three decades, the financial crime risk landscape has
expanded dramatically for private and public sector organizations.
So too have regulatory expectations, and public and media
attention on financial crime issues.

The silo’ed approach of the past is gradually giving way to a wider view that treats financial crime
risks like money laundering, fraud and corruption as parts of an interconnected whole.

As a result, financial crime compliance professionals are increasingly seeking

adaptive, comprehensive training resources that provide visibility into a broader
range of threats.

PRESENT DAY
LATE 2000s Diverse risks,
Tax evasion soaring
2000s MID - 2000s expectations, rising
Terrorist crackdown,
1970s – 90s FCPA and anti- massive fraud cyber threats
money financing, corruption
heightened schemes exposed
laundering is enforcement
primary regulatory
focus scrutiny
Why CFCS

The CFCS credential responds to this shift in compliance, regulation, and enforcement toward a
converged approach to financial crime by validating knowledge and skill in multiple financial
crime fields.

• Many financial crimes share common elements, channels, red flags and methodologies

• Detection and prevention techniques share similarities across disciplines; awareness and
cross-pollination of best practices can improve results

• Convergence is a trend in both public and private sectors, but also among threat actors

• Building information flows, “speaking the same language” across departments increasingly
essential

• Growing recognition of interconnections between financial crime by national governments

and international standard-setting bodies, from FATF to OECD to FinCEN
What’s in the Certification

145 questions in 12 subject

areas

Increased coverage of timely topics

– Cybercrime, beneficial
ownership, cryptocurrencies,
terrorist financing

Continuous review and improvement

– Annual refresh, audiobook, new
prep materials
 What’s on
the Certification
Construction of CFCS Certification

• Extensive multi-step process:

• Identification of Job Tasks
• Worldwide survey
• Writing of exam items based on job task and survey
findings
• Detailed review and selection of items by experts and
psychometricians
• Ongoing revision and update by Exam Review
Committee – CFCS 2.0

• Staff and team who led process had built 3 prior

certifications
About The Exam

• 145 scenario based, four choice, multiple choice questions

• Cut score about 70%
• Four hour exam session with no breaks, at one of over 900 testing
centers
• Passing rate is over 80%
• Results given immediately
• Spanish and Arabic-language versions
• Retake after 60 days
Study Manual 6th Edition

• Over 300 pages on the full

spectrum

• First and best resource to prepare

for the exam

• New layout and format to improve

readability and user experience

• Over 30 pages of recent content updates

o New section on human trafficking
o Updated and expanded section on CDD/EDD
o New section on internal fraud risks
Prep Resource Online Prep Course

• 11-hour online course, included in

Certification Package for all
candidates
• Entirely self-paced, accessible at any
time
• Includes about 50 video interviews
with experts providing case studies
and real-world examples
• About 40 practice questions
included throughout the chapters
• Reflects content in CFCS Prep
Webinars
Prep Resource: Practice Exam

• Now 92 total questions

• More added on a rolling basis

• Scenario-based, reflect the

structure and content of exam
items

• Can be taken by candidates an

unlimited number of times
Prep Resource: CFCS Study Plan

• Lays out example eight-week study

plan, divided into four phases

• Provides guidance on how and

when to use prep resources, other
steps in process

• Customize based on your study

habits and schedule – No one “right
way”
Other Preparation Aids

• Audiobook of Manual
• Tips on How to Prepare and Pass
• CFCS Live Prep Webinars, including decks
and recordings
• CFCS Candidate Handbook and Application
• Guide to Prep Resources
• Links to schedule exam online
 Recommended about 8
weeks of study, if you commit
3-4 hours a week

Review manual in detail,

including referenced
materials and appendix,
online prep course

Prepare based on your

own strengths and
weaknesses

Exam based on best practices,

Not what you might do at
About the Exam your organization
Next Steps Prospective Candidates

• Register for CFCS exam

• Document 40 CFCS credits based on
professional experience, training, and
education, including other certifications
• Provide two professional references
• Submit application
• Study manual and complete online prep
resources
• Schedule, take and pass exam
• Candidates have up to 90 days to submit credit
documentation after exam
• Recertify every three years
Demand For CFCS Certification

• Professionals in 83 jurisdictions
have earned CFCS certification
or registered for it since its
release in May 2013

• 20 major global institutions,

Big 4 firms, and law
enforcement agencies in
several countries have signed
up as many as 200 staff
members for certification
Next Steps

Ready to Get Started?

Register online at ACFCS.org!

Have Questions?
Visit acfcs.org/certification

Need Guidance?
Contact Abner Santana at asantana@acfcs.org
Or 786-235-7373
Practice Question 1

You are an AML officer at a local bank, which holds accounts for a variety of businesses in
your region. Most businesses are tied to the tourism and hospitality industry, as the region
is a major vacation destination during the summer months. Many accountholders are small
businesses that deal primarily in cash.

You are investigating an alert produced by your transaction monitoring system on an

account held by a local, family-owned restaurant located near one of the largest tourist
resorts in the area. After reviewing KYC information on the account, you determine the
family lives in a neighboring country.

Upon reviewing the account’s activity, you learn the following information. Which fact
best supports the possibility that the restaurant account may be used for money
laundering?
Practice Question 1

A. The restaurant makes large cash deposits into its account biweekly from June until
early September.

B. The account shows a pattern of funds transfers each month to an account held at
a bank in a neighboring country.

C. The restaurant’s account shows consistent deposit activity throughout the

calendar year.

D. The restaurant’s cash deposits were made through a combination of counter and
ATM deposits.
Practice Question 2

You are part of a fraud incident response team that has been investigating the loss of
several hundred thousand dollars from your institution.

After reviewing transactions and company books and records, your team has determined
that the losses are connected to dozens of payments to offshore shell companies recently
added to your company’s approved vendor list.

Based on the available information, what would be the best procedure you would
recommend to identify the perpetrators of the fraud scheme and prevent similar losses
in the future?
Practice Question 2

A. Conduct enhanced due diligence to identify the beneficial owners of all approved
vendors

B. Implement a training program to assist your institution’s employees to detect and

report possible account takeover schemes.

C. Review internal log files to identify the employee who made changes to the
vendor list, and set up an alert process for any new vendors going forward.

D. Conduct negative news screening on all employees with access to the vendor list
and implement ongoing screening procedures for new employees.
Practice Question 3

You are an investigator who has been asked to investigate potential fraud within a IT and
tech support company. It is suspected that one or employees are stealing company funds,
but the managers who have hired you are uncertain how it is happening.

The company has been successful in recent months. Its sales have grown significantly, and
it is expanding the geographic area in which it operates. It relies on many third parties to
conduct its operations, including contractors and sales agents.

You have started your investigation by examining invoices and other payment records
made by the company to third parties.

Which record would you prioritize as MOST suspicious?

Practice Question 3

A. Payment records to a new sales agent that show that commissions were paid
within the first two months of employment

B. Contracts that show several new contractors in a city in which the manufacturer
did not previously operate

C. Transaction records that show commission checks larger than any other
commission payments were issued to the most experienced sales agent

D. Invoices paid to a distributor that include sizable reimbursements for unspecified

travel expenses
Questions?
Thank You For Attending!