What is it about?
This study examines how companies in resource-limited environments can use digital technologies to detect and prevent fraud. It follows a large Indian insurance company from 2013 to 2023, analyzing how economic, regulatory, and competitive factors influenced its fraud detection approach. The study finds that off-the-shelf fraud detection tools are expensive and often unsuitable for developing markets. Instead, the company created its own fraud detection system, the "Fraud-O-Meter," using data mining and frugal innovation. The study highlights the need for flexible regulations that allow firms to develop cost-effective fraud detection tools tailored to their unique needs.
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Why is it important?
Insurance companies in emerging markets don’t always need expensive software to fight fraud. By developing low-cost, in-house digital tools, firms can detect fraud effectively while managing limited resources. The study highlights how practical, context-driven solutions can strengthen fraud control, help companies comply with regulations, and make risk management more sustainable and adaptable.
Perspectives
In my experience of carrying out research over a decade that many firms struggle with expensive, off-the-shelf fraud solutions that don’t fit their context. What I find inspiring about this research is how it shows that innovation doesn’t have to be costly—smart, in-house digital tools can effectively detect fraud and build a culture of accountability, even in resource-constrained environments.
Dr Ruchi Agarwal
Management Development Institute
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Leveraging digital technologies to control fraud in a resource-constrained institutional environment: a longitudinal case study, Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, August 2025, Emerald,
DOI: 10.1108/jaoc-06-2024-0209.
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