A question of trust

Article Abstract:

Accountants should take advantage of the opportunity being offered by the burgeoning online shopping business. Despite their enthusiasm for computer shopping, consumers are still reluctant to fully accept online commerce as a result of their concerns regarding the security of the system. Accountants have a role to play in alleviating these fears and thereby contributing to the growth of the business. They are perceived as protectors of financial correctness and can apply their practice to electronic commerce to provide consumers the peace of mind they demand when shopping via the Internet. The AICPA is already actively helping accountants engage in electronic commerce. Its main initiative is the WebTrust, a seal of assurance that informs online consumers that those carrying the seal comply with standards. WebTrust adheres to the principles of business practice, transaction integrity and information protection.

Telegraph & other communications, Video Retailing Service, All Other Information Services, Standards, Electronic commerce, E-commerce, Home shopping

Money laundering: the wash that won't come clean

Article Abstract:

Money laundering is the process of disguising proceeds from criminal activities so that they would seem to be generated by a legitimate business. Although nobody knows with certainty just how big laundering turnover is, estimates range from the conservative $100 billion annually to as much as $1,000 billion a year. Dirty money often comes from drugs, but it is also generated by such activities as organized crime and white collar crime. Laundering has three phases: placement, layering and integration. Placement is the stage when the dirty money is entered into financial institutions. Layering is the phase characterized by the transfer and transformation of funds to obscure their original source. Integration is the phase when the money becomes a bona-fide asset or is transformed into cleaner and more usable money. Accountants have an important role to play in detecting money laundering in their organizations.

Analysis, Money laundering

Jenny Hasnip

Article Abstract:

Accountant Jenny Hasnip left her job at the accounting firm KPMG to work as a trainer for The Financial Training Co. (FTC). Her first job was teaching bookkeeping, then she moved on to become a subject head, a director and senior lecturer, and an author manager. She is presently FTC's publishing manager, a job which allows her to keep typical office hours so she can have enough time for her family. This position requires Hasnip to hold meetings with full-time authors, academic heads, production staff and other people who report to her. She also spends some of her time lecturing, writing or editing some technical paper, and making arrangements for authors to write on various subjects. Hasnip contends that teaching offers more personal and immediate rewards than practice.

Accounting, Vocational guidance, Hasnip, Jenny