Financial Fraud Prevention Experts 2025

I am a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and the founder of Forenziq, a forensic accounting firm focused on fraud investigations and financial analysis. I help businesses and legal professionals identify financial misconduct, quantify losses, and uncover the truth behind complex financial matters.

I have 24 years of experience in the credit counseling industry, specializing in operations, compliance, debt management, and consumer financial education. As Senior Manager of Compliance and Media at Money Fit, I ensure our programs meet strict standards for integrity, accuracy, and regulatory compliance. I am a HUD Certified Housing Counselor and serve on the Board of Directors for the Financial Counseling Association of America (FCAA). My work focuses entirely on nonprofit credit counseling. I help consumers understand the clear mechanics of regulated debt management versus the risks tied to for-profit debt settlement. Consumers deserve straightforward financial guidance that is realistic, responsible, and built for actual progress.

Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA, is a nationally recognized federal prison expert. He serves as Managing Director at Elizabeth Franklin-Best P.C. and Zoukis Consulting Group, where his federal criminal defense practice focuses on federal appeals, post-conviction relief, compassionate release, clemency, and Bureau of Prisons policy matters. Mr. Zoukis is the author of six books on federal criminal defense and prison policy, including The Habeas Citebook: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel (Prison Legal News Publishing, 3rd ed. forthcoming 2025), Federal Criminal Defendant’s Handbook (Middle Street Publishing, forthcoming 2025), Directory of Federal Prisons (2020), Federal Prison Handbook (2017), Prison Education Guide (2017), and College for Convicts (2014). His Federal Prison Handbook received numerous awards, including the Reader’s Favorite Book Awards Gold Medal, the Next Generation Indie Book Award, and the Chanticleer Book Awards Instructional & Insightful Nonfiction Award. College for Convicts received the Eric Hoffer Book Award’s Montaigne Medal for the most thought-provoking book of the year. Mr. Zoukis earned his Juris Doctor from the University of California, Davis School of Law, where he served as Articles Editor of the UC Davis Law Review and received both the Witkin Award and Reynoso Award for Academic Excellence. He also holds an MBA and a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Adams State University. Major media outlets regularly seek his expertise. He has been quoted in CNN, Fox News, ABC News, Associated Press, USA Today, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Bloomberg Law, and Vice News, among others. He has contributed articles to the Huffington Post, New York Daily News, Prison Legal News, and Criminal Legal News. Mr. Zoukis’s Prison Law Blog was named a Top Law Blawg by the American Bar Association, and he was a finalist for the Society of Professional Journalists’ Mark of Excellence Award. He has assisted hundreds of clients with federal prison preparation, in-prison advocacy, and reentry matters, and is considered a leading voice on federal prison policy nationwide. Learn more about Chris at https://federalcriminaldefenseattorney.com/about/christopher-zoukis-federal-prison-consultant/

Mark Winter is a seasoned art certification expert, fine art appraiser, and expert witness, with over two decades of experience in the global art market. A former associate at Sotheby’s.com and a senior specialist at Art Authentication Experts, Inc. Since 2003, he has worked on cases spanning authentication, attribution, appraisal, and the investigation of forgery, theft, and rediscovery. Mark and his team regularly collaborate with journalists and media across print, digital, radio, and film, providing expert insight into art authentication, attribution, and market trends. Their commentary has been featured in investigative reports, documentaries, news segments, and podcasts worldwide. Offering rapid fact verification (often within 24–48 hours) and multilingual interviews in 21 languages, Mark supports timely stories with accuracy and depth.

For 14 years, The Daily Scam has been dedicated to exposing online/phone fraud and educating the public how to recognize it, and reduce their risks from it! Our work has been featured in many articles and news websites, including Wired.com, NBC, NECN and WGBH. Doug Fodeman, the Co-Founder and Content Director for TheDailyScam.com, was also a featured expert in 8 of 10 episodes of a 2024 UK Docu Series called "A Perfect Scam" (available on Britbox & UK Apple TV. e.g. Season 1, Episode 5: Indiana - Murder for Hire) Our work has also helped provide the FBI with evidence of fraud related to a sextortion scam. During our 14 years, the team at TDS has helped tens of thousands of people avoid fraud, recover from fraud, stop fraud that targeted them. (However, we are not a "fund recovery" service in any way for victims who have lost money to fraud.) Besides dozens of articles about online/phone fraud on TheDailyScam.com, we offer lots of excellent tips and strategies for staying safe, reducing your risks and better protecting yourself and your family.

Franco Velasquez is the CEO and founder of HostBreach, a cybersecurity advisory firm specializing in external cyber intelligence, attack surface analysis, and intelligence-driven advisory for defense contractors and regulated organizations. His work focuses on understanding how attackers identify, prioritize, and compromise targets using publicly available intelligence, often before traditional security controls detect activity. Franco advises organizations on CMMC readiness, CUI exposure, ransomware risk, and pre-incident threat visibility, helping leaders understand real-world risk beyond checklist compliance. He has experience working with OSINT-based reconnaissance, threat actor behavior analysis, and tabletop attack simulations aligned to observed intrusion patterns. He is frequently consulted on topics including ransomware trends, external exposure management, supply chain risk, and how attackers exploit misconfigurations and unpatched systems. Franco emphasizes practical, intelligence-led decision-making that helps organizations reduce risk before incidents occur.

Investment industry veteran that cofounded a tech startup to help seniors avoid elder fraud. 30 years experience in the investment and insurance business. Experience over a range of asset classes with deep experience in derivatives and risk management. Early adapter of derivatives in insurance portfolios and mutual funds. Built out independent risk organization at two firms. Experienced Chief Risk Officer(CRO) for US and UCITs funds. Demonstrated commercial instinct. Experience with: Investments Product and Strategy Risk Market Risk and Investment Risk Risk Management of UCITS Derivatives, Futures, Options, Swap Silver tech

As the CEO and Founder of Crusaders for Change® (C4C), LLC, our team delivers a specialized approach to financial stewardship that focuses on the human heart and the emotional weight of money as much as the numbers. Led by a team of Accredited Financial Counselors®️, we have built a dedicated space where genuine financial healing and long-term freedom are achievable for families from all walks of life. Within the corporate and organizational sector, we developed our signature Financial Wellness Program to directly combat the "silent tax" of financial stress that often plagues the workplace. By addressing these stressors through professional counseling and support, we partner with businesses to improve employee retention, boost productivity, and foster a culture of total well-being. Our commitment to community impact is further realized through our proprietary Community Financial Empowerment Series®, where we offer transformative educational workshops and personalized one-on-one counseling designed to help individuals regain confidence, clarity, and control over their financial futures. We also engage a global audience through the Yahweh’s Money® Podcast, which provides spiritual and practical stewardship guidance, and the Tickle My Money Bone!® platform, which utilizes humor and comedy to demystify complex financial topics and break down the barriers of money-related anxiety. With over two decades of professional experience and a highly decorated history of leadership, our mission remains centered on equipping families and organizations with the tools to transition from financial overwhelm to a future of abundance, resilience, and intentional peace.

I am an Expert Witness, CPA, and Certified Fraud Examiner with over 20 years experience as a fraud investigator and forensic accountant. I have testified at bench trials, and presented findings at mediations, and ADR hearings, My practice focuses on fraud, embezzlement, income and asset tracing, fiduciary misconduct,and elder financial abuse investigations. I prepare Fiduciary Accountings, and create financial reconstructions for tax issues and loan compliance. I am the past Chairperson of the Sonoma County Financial Abuse Specialist Team (FAST) and a past member of the Napa County FAST.

I am an Institutional Debt Market Architect with more than 17 years of experience designing the valuation, liquidity, and recovery protocols that banks, credit unions, fintech lenders, and private credit funds rely on to make high-stakes decisions. I’ve advised on, analyzed, or helped broker over $100 billion in performing and non-performing receivables across consumer, commercial, auto, BNPL, mortgage, and specialty finance asset classes. My work sits at the intersection of portfolio valuation, lending risk, distressed-asset strategy, and AI-driven recovery intelligence. I help institutions understand the true condition of their receivables, uncover hidden risk, and translate complex credit dynamics into clear, actionable decisions. When lenders need to determine whether to hold, recover, restructure, or sell an asset, I’m the person they call. As Director of Portfolio Liquidity & Asset Disposition at Fitzgerald Advisors, I architect and execute loan-sale strategies, oversee due diligence, and structure NPL and charged-off debt transactions that maximize proceeds while maintaining regulatory integrity. I also build the technology that powers modern receivables strategy. I created Debt Catalyst, an AI-driven valuation and liquidation-curve engine used by professional debt buyers and investors. I developed Bank Watch Pro, a real-time intelligence platform that interprets FDIC and NCUA call-report data to identify institutional credit risk, NPL trends, charge-off exposure, and early-warning indicators. Across my ventures, I focus on one mission: turning distressed receivables, delinquency, and charge-offs into liquidity, clarity, and competitive advantage for financial institutions. I provide expert commentary on: Distressed portfolio valuation & credit-risk analysis NPL and charged-off debt sales Fintech lending trends & BNPL credit performance Bank & credit union financial health (FDIC/NCUA analytics) AI in collections, segmentation, and liquidation modeling Regulatory and compliance implications in debt markets I don’t follow the debt markets — I architect them. And I use that experience to help lenders, investors, and agencies make smarter, faster, and more profitable decisions.

As a Digital Privacy Advocate and Lead SEO at Adult Advisor, I specialize in auditing digital platforms for user safety, subscription transparency, and data security. My work involves reverse-engineering complex web architectures and ensuring platforms adhere to strict consumer protection standards. With extensive experience in technical SEO and digital marketing, I help bridge the gap between user experience and web security, analyzing how online ecosystems can protect consumers from predatory billing and data breaches. I frequently share insights on technical SEO strategy, affiliate marketing, and digital privacy.

Scott Altiparmak is a Senior Information Security Engineer with 8+ years of experience spanning identity and access management, email security, and cloud security, with a focus on building and automating enterprise security programs end to end. He is the creator of Threat Terminal, a live game-based research platform studying how humans detect phishing in the generative AI era, and maintains open-source tools including Enterprise-Zapp and Threat Intelligence Tarot. He serves as Director of Programming for the South Florida ISSA chapter and speaks regularly at industry and academic events including Tech Hub Pulse 2026, PBSC CyberWeek, and the PBSC Cybersecurity Symposium.

Founder, Performance Marketing Executive and outdoor enthusiast.Formerly @bitcoinira, @healthnetwork, @latimes, @wwsaatchi (client: @lexus)Areas of Expertise: Executive Leadership | Performance Marketing | Growth Expert | Strategic Partnerships | Adweek National Award Winner

Fraud investigator, turned local marketer. As the co-founder of Pillar Digital Marketing, I work with the most remarkable local businesses to help you tell your unique story online.A fraud investigator is just a storyteller, and after more than a decade as a white collar crime investigator, I decided it was time to stop telling stories about the bad guys. Now, I tell stories about the good guys to help the best small businesses grow.Modern marketing is all about earning trust online. You can't trick search engines anymore. But, what you can do is tell the story of what makes your business a good choice for your customers. I help you show the world that you're qualified, reputable, and great at what you do so that your local business can thrive.

I’m a security consultant and the founder of North Star Group, where I help individuals, organizations, and communities strengthen their overall safety and preparedness. With over 20 years of experience across military and private-sector security, my work focuses on physical security assessments, threat and vulnerability analysis, CPTED principles, workplace violence prevention, and expert witness consulting. I’ve supported clients across a wide range of sectors—including education, government, business, healthcare, critical infrastructure, and houses of worship—by providing practical, real-world guidance rooted in proactive risk management. Whether it’s improving day-to-day security, planning for emergencies, or helping legal teams understand foreseeability and duty of care, I bring a layered and strategic approach to every situation. If you're looking for expert insight on how to build safer environments and reduce risk, I'm always open to contributing. *If any portion of my response is used, I’d appreciate attribution as follows: Daniel Loo, CPP®, PSS, SRMP — Principal Consultant at North Star Group, a Houston-based security and risk management firm.

9+ years PR and media relations experience. Now in the ultra-high-net-worth wealth management space with Fidelis Capital after years in the luxury goods and real estate sectors with Discovery Land Company, Casamigos Tequila, and Tiffany & Co. Have secured national coverage for Fidelis Capital in Barron's, Bloomberg, Crain Currency, Forbes, Kiplinger, Reuters, and the Wall Street Journal, along with trade coverage in Financial Planning, InvestmentNews, and WealthManagement.com. Fidelis Capital is a 5-star firm in Newsweek's 2026 list of America's Top Financial Advisory Firms. Subject matter experts at Fidelis Capital include: - Chris Gunster, CFA, Partner & Head of Fixed Income (previously Bank of America Chief Investment Office, oversaw $60 billion in assets; Forbes.com contributor) - Rick Simonetti, Founding Partner, CEO & Head of Wealth Planning (previously Wells Fargo Private Wealth Management's National Head of Wealth Planning; Kiplinger contributor) - Matt Michaels, CFA, CFP, Founding Partner & Co-Chief Investment Officer (previously Wells Fargo Private Bank Senior Private Wealth Portfolio Manager; deep expertise in private markets investing) - Neale Ellis, CFA, Founding Partner & Co-Chief Investment Officer (previously Bank of America Private Bank principal portfolio manager of Managed Active Core)

I'm the founder of Scannerfy.com, a free AI image and deepfake detection tool that analyzes images in under 5 seconds with 95% accuracy. I help individuals, journalists, and businesses verify whether images are AI-generated or real from Midjourney to DALL-E 3 and Stable Diffusion.

Chris Hadnagy is the Founder and CEO of Social-Engineer, LLC. During Chris’ 20+ years in information security, he created the world’s first social engineering framework and newsletter. He has also hosted the first social engineering-based podcast. Chris is the Founder, Executive Director, and Board Member, for the Innocent Lives Foundation, a nonprofit organization that identifies anonymous child predators and helps bring them to justice. Having written five books on social engineering, Chris is also a well-known author. His most recent book, “Human Hacking: Win Friends, Influence People and Leave Them Better Off for Having Met You,” was released January 5, 2021. Chris leads the way in educating people about social engineering. He created the world’s first Social Engineering Capture the Flag (SECTF) to raise awareness of this serious threat. Chris is also an Adjunct Professor of Social Engineering for the University of Arizona’s NSA designated Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Operations (CAE-CO). And he also lectures and teaches about social engineering around the globe. Moreover, he was invited to speak at the Pentagon and other high-security facilities. Chris works with some of the world’s leaders in scientific research for the purpose of acquiring a deeper understanding of social engineering. Notably, Chris authored a book with Dr. Paul Ekman regarding the use of nonverbal communication by social engineers. Chris is certified as an Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP), as well as an Offensive Security Wireless Professional (OSWP). He is also the creator of the Social Engineering Pentest Professional (SEPP), Certified Ethical Social Engineer (CESE), and Master’s Level Social Engineering (MLSE), certifications. “Understanding the ways humans make decisions is integral in everything we do from maintaining security to communicating with the people in your life. Social engineering skills, when used properly, can make your life so much better.” – Chris Hadnagy Chris’ published books include: Social Engineering: The Art of Human Hacking Unmasking the Social Engineer: The Human Element of Security Phishing Dark Waters: The Offensive and Defensive Sides of Malicious E-mails Social Engineering: The Science of Human Hacking 2nd Edition Human Hacking: Win Friends, Influence People, and Leave Them Better Off for Having Met You

Shwetha Babu Prasad is a data security and privacy professional, speaker, and published author with nearly a decade of experience in information security. Her work focuses on advancing practical, engineering-driven approaches to protect sensitive data and reduce systemic data exposure risks. She has experience implementing data protection controls across enterprise systems to mitigate the risk of sensitive data exposure. She is the author of Why Websites Fail at Data Protection and Privacy and Data Security in the Age of AI. An active member of ISC2 and the Information Systems Security Association, she contributes to industry initiatives aligned with National Institute of Standards and Technology frameworks through the ISSA Resilience Special Interest Group. Her work advances practical, engineering driven data protection and privacy capabilities, strengthening cyber resilience across enterprise and critical infrastructure environments.

James is a CPA, IRS Enrolled Agent, and Tax Resolution Specialist at CanvaTax (canvatax.com), where he helps individuals and businesses resolve complex tax issues including IRS debt, back taxes, and penalty relief through programs like the IRS Fresh Start Initiative. With hands-on experience navigating IRS negotiations and tax compliance, James provides practical, results-driven guidance to clients facing financial uncertainty.