Payroll frauds involve employees who receive fraudulent payments and keep the payments for their personal gain. These frauds are typically executed in one of two general ways.

One, an employee gains control of the payroll master file and adds a fake name and personal information to the file. The employee, who may collude with other employees, then submits fake time cards for the ghost employee so that the payroll disbursement system will generate a fraudulent payment for the ghost employee.

Two, an employee inflates the number of hours worked. The employee could knowingly do this on his time card, although this method runs the risk of being detected by a supervisor. The employee could also inflate his hours by gaining access to the payroll processing system and change his payroll hours there.

If you suspect a payroll fraud involving a government organization or government contract, contact the Qui Tam attorneys of Tycko & Zavareei, LLP, at 202-973-0900.