With the rising of technological infrastructure, financial markets are fast becoming a part of everyone's daily life and many new investment avenues are emerging. Unfortunately this also means, there is a rise in white collar crimes especially in times of financial difficultly and lay-offs. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed that in FY 2011 after closing over 33000 fraud files2, the ten most common complaints were advanced fees fraud, manipulation of securities or prices, account administration and processing, delivery of funds or proceeds, transfer of accounts, retirement or 401k plans, short selling, misrepresentation or omissions and theft or forgery.

Detecting Frauds

When the slightest doubt or suspicion arises, it is best to consult someone with tremendous knowledge and experience about investments and scams, a need that can be easily fulfilled with an Atlanta securities fraud lawyer. One of two things can happen from there -
€ Your attorney will clear up all your doubts about investment activities and assure you or educate you about the process; OR
€ Your attorney will confirm your doubts with further investigation and start taking measures to recover or prevent the damages

An experienced attorney will know how to investigate lawfully and yet keep it clandestine till some credible evidence is achieved from the investigation. It is a must-do before making any serious accusations against an individual or an investment firm. Experts and technologically advanced methods are often required for such activities. Moreover the judgment of who should be involved or aware of any such activity is also very important.

Gathering Evidence

This stage succeeds the investigation setup. Evidence can be gathered by means of documents, reports, receipts, and even personal communications such as telephone conversations, SMS, e-mails and so on. A detailed report of how the evidence was found and how the fraudulent activities or malpractices were confirmed also needs to be maintained on a timely basis since it is what the following arbitration, mediation or litigation will be based upon. Many-a-times the law enforcement agencies will need to be involved in the investigation especially when activities like tracing funds or identities are involved which cannot be pursued by anyone except the law. These tasks may seem overwhelming to a single person but are quite achievable with an Atlanta securities law firm.

Red Flags to Lookout For

Before fraud detection and the gathering of evidence, it is up to the common man to watch out for potential or existent frauds and the following are some red flags -

€ Guaranteed Returns
€ Double returns and no risk!
€ Pretentious Websites
€ Investment must be done now!

The rule of thumb is to educate you as an investor and remain up-to-date with market trends and news. Good research, clarity of the investment architecture, and making a well-informed decision is what will allow you to make good investments.