Fraud Specialist II

Fraud Specialist II

This position is responsible for analyzing alerts to detect irregular or suspicious transactions and prevent losses associated with fraud and financial crimes, taking appropriate action to protect the bank and its customers. This position is responsible for investigating cases of fraud and assisting with case management including maintaining necessary records and files to ensure efficient and consistent reporting of fraud investigations in compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act Compliance Program. Team members interact frequently with customer-facing stakeholders, as well as law enforcement and authorities, and use case management software to track fraud from identification through recovery and resolution.

Major duties and responsibilities include researching, analyzing, and investigating customer account behavior daily for potential fraud and suspicious activity from system-generated alerts and referrals escalated by other departments. Tracks trends and detects unusual activity or behavior, determining if transactions are fraudulent and/or suspicious in nature. Compiles data and maintains necessary records and files to ensure efficient and consistent reporting of fraud investigations. Determines if a case should be created and/or escalated for SAR consideration. Obtains approval from the BSA Fraud Manager as necessary and assists with documentation within regulatory timeframes, adhering to the Bank Secrecy Act Compliance Program. Composes narratives to document potentially suspicious activity for reporting purposes and creates reports based on available information related to the investigation. Responds to inquiries or refers inquiries to the appropriate person and exhibits the necessary follow-through with internal and external customers. The specialist will explain fraud cases, answer questions related to fraud matters and communicate clearly and professionally. On occasion, urgent matters will need to be escalated. The Specialist will need to exercise sound judgment in determining the need to escalate. Processes disputes related to check fraud. Makes recommendations for closing/restricting accounts, placing holds, disabling account access through various channels, and performs associated follow-up to ensure the closure of the accounts. Liaise with internal partners, law enforcement, and other financial institutions to investigate fraud events. Processes restitution and recoveries.

Additional duties and responsibilities include being familiar with various types of financial transactions and being able to reasonably identify counterfeiting, kiting, check washing, less cash scams and other types of bank fraud. Comply with the Bank Secrecy Act and all other laws and banking regulations. Maintain current knowledge of applicable fraud detection software. Assist customers in a prompt, professional and courteous manner. Maintain the confidentiality of Bank and customer information. Serves as subject matter expert for Community Bank staff on fraudulent transactions and emerging fraud risk. Completes all required compliance exams on a yearly basis. Adherence to all First United Policies and Procedures. Dress professionally.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Education and work experience college degree preferred. Minimum 3-5 years of fraud/BSA experience required. ACAMS, CFE, CFCI, CFCS and/or related certification preferred. Knowledge of federal BSA/AML regulations required. Familiar with bank operations in general. Technical/Functional competencies include ability to use standard computer software (MS Outlook, MS Excel) and quickly learn to navigate and operate job-specific software and web-based applications. Ability to communicate efficiently and effectively on the phone and through email to internal customers and business partners. Demonstrate ability to work independently with little to no supervision. Strong work ethic, critical thinking, and problems solving skills with attention to detail. Consistently perform in a volume driven environment where workload fluctuates, but deadlines stay the same and service levels must be met. Must possess a high level of initiative and a natural investigative demeanor. Ability to work independently and in a team environment to achieve department goals and objectives consistent with First United's standards of excellence. Must be comfortable managing multiple and/or shifting priorities, and produce professional and accurate work product, sometimes under time constraints. Must possess the desire to increase learning and gain further expertise in fraud and financial crimes.