Tools used by savvy professionals in the good times may become the devices of a fraudster during the bad, warns Andrew Durant.

There is nothing new under the sun about fraud. The only thing that changes is the type of fraud committed. This recession, based on a global credit crisis, has its own particular qualities that mean certain kinds of fraud will be more prevalent than others.

The typical fraudster is a university-educated male. Men commit nearly three-quarters of all frauds. Nearly half of employees who turn to fraud have been with their employer for more than five years.