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100+ Free CAFS Practice Questions

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Under the ACFE fraud taxonomy, the three primary categories of occupational fraud are:

A
B
C
D
to track
2026 Statistics

Key Facts: CAFS Exam

80

Exam Questions

ACAMS (approximate)

75%

Passing Score

ACAMS

2 hours

Exam Duration

ACAMS

$795

Exam Fee

ACAMS (approximate)

3 years

Validity

ACAMS (CE required)

Launched 2024

Program Age

ACAMS (November 2024)

CAFS is ACAMS' newer specialist certification for anti-fraud professionals, launched in November 2024. The exam has approximately 80 questions over 2 hours with a 75% passing score and a fee of approximately $795. Candidates must complete the five-course program and maintain active ACAMS membership. The program is valued at 17 ACAMS credits (+8 for the Virtual Classroom Series) usable toward the 40 eligibility credits. The credential is valid for 3 years and requires continuing education credits to recertify. Pearson VUE delivery (test center or online proctored). Verify exact specs on acams.org — ACAMS does not publish all details publicly.

Sample CAFS Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your CAFS exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1Under the ACFE fraud taxonomy, the three primary categories of occupational fraud are:
A.Asset misappropriation, corruption, and financial statement fraud
B.Tax evasion, insider trading, and bribery
C.Identity theft, wire fraud, and bank fraud
D.BEC, romance scams, and pig butchering
Explanation: The ACFE's Fraud Tree divides occupational fraud into (1) asset misappropriation (most common, smallest losses per scheme), (2) corruption (bribery, conflicts of interest), and (3) financial statement fraud (rarest, largest losses per scheme). This taxonomy underpins anti-fraud program design.
2The Fraud Triangle, developed by Donald Cressey, identifies three factors that typically co-occur in fraud:
A.Pressure, Opportunity, Rationalization
B.Planning, Execution, Escape
C.People, Process, Profit
D.Identity, Authority, Authentication
Explanation: Cressey's Fraud Triangle: (1) Pressure (financial strain or personal motive), (2) Opportunity (access to assets with weak controls), (3) Rationalization (moral justification). Extensions include the Fraud Diamond (+Capability) and Fraud Pentagon (+Arrogance/Competence).
3'Authorized Push Payment' (APP) fraud refers to:
A.Unauthorized ATM withdrawals
B.Fraud where a victim is tricked into authorizing a transfer to an account controlled by a criminal (e.g., BEC, romance scam)
C.Check forgery
D.Credit card skimming
Explanation: APP fraud exploits the victim's own authorization — BEC, impersonation, romance scams, investment fraud. UK PSR 2024 rules mandate reimbursement under specific conditions. U.S. firms increasingly offer limited reimbursement. Detection leans on behavioral analytics and friction warnings at key points.
4Benford's Law is used in fraud analytics to:
A.Set audit budgets
B.Detect potentially manipulated numeric data by checking whether leading-digit frequencies follow an expected logarithmic distribution
C.Calibrate hardware
D.Determine salaries
Explanation: Benford's Law predicts that the leading digit 1 appears about 30.1% of the time in many naturally occurring datasets, decreasing to ~4.6% for digit 9. Deviations can suggest fabricated numbers (e.g., expense reports, tax filings). Popularized by Mark Nigrini for forensic use.
5Under COSO ERM, fraud risk assessment should:
A.Be done once at company founding
B.Be a continuous, enterprise-wide process considering likelihood and impact of fraud across processes, people, and systems
C.Only cover vendor risk
D.Be outsourced entirely
Explanation: COSO ERM (2017 update) integrates fraud risk into enterprise risk: continuous identification/assessment, impact/likelihood scoring, prioritization, control mapping, and monitoring. ACFE/COSO Fraud Risk Management Guide (2016/2023) provides practical application guidance.
6A KEY fraud prevention control is 'segregation of duties' which:
A.Assigns the same person to do everything
B.Ensures that no single individual controls all phases of a transaction (e.g., authorizing, recording, reconciling) to prevent concealment
C.Eliminates reconciliation
D.Requires two passwords
Explanation: SoD is a foundational internal control — separating custody, authorization, recording, and reconciliation. When combined personnel control conflicting functions, fraud risk rises materially. Exceptions (small teams) require compensating controls like mandatory vacations, job rotation, and oversight.
7Mandatory vacation as a control helps detect fraud because:
A.Employees are happier
B.While the employee is away, colleagues perform their duties and can identify anomalies, forced-out records, or suspicious patterns
C.It reduces overtime
D.It increases training time
Explanation: Mandatory continuous leave (e.g., 2 consecutive weeks) is a longstanding banking control — during forced absence, another person sees the role's activities and often detects manipulation. Used in conjunction with SoD and job rotation. A classic ACFE anti-fraud recommendation.
8A 'whistleblower hotline' is a KEY detection control because:
A.It replaces audits
B.According to ACFE's Report to the Nations, tips (often via hotline) are the most common initial fraud detection method
C.It is cheap
D.It requires no staffing
Explanation: ACFE consistently finds tips are the #1 detection method (~42% of frauds), dwarfing internal audit and management review. Effective programs include anonymous options, multi-language support, non-retaliation policies (under SOX, Dodd-Frank), and consistent follow-through.
9'Tone at the top' in a fraud prevention program refers to:
A.Office music
B.The ethical climate and behavior set by senior leadership — communicating integrity expectations through words, actions, and incentives
C.The CEO's voice pitch
D.The company logo
Explanation: Ethical tone at the top sets expectations, shapes culture, and influences employee behavior. Consistent messaging, demonstrated enforcement, and aligned incentives are required. Poor tone correlates with higher fraud rates and severity (Enron, WorldCom, Wells Fargo sales-practices scandal).
10BEC (Business Email Compromise) commonly appears as:
A.Only random spam
B.Executive impersonation, vendor impersonation, invoice manipulation, and payroll diversion — resulting in wire transfers to attacker-controlled accounts
C.Random phone calls
D.Physical mail theft
Explanation: BEC/EAC (Email Account Compromise) variants: CEO fraud (executive impersonation), vendor invoice fraud (changed beneficiary), W-2 theft (HR impersonation), real estate closing fraud, and payroll diversion. FBI IC3 reports multi-billion losses annually.

About the CAFS Exam

The CAFS certification, launched by ACAMS in November 2024, addresses rising fraud risk in financial institutions and the convergence of fraud with AML. It validates competency across fraud taxonomy (ACFE Fraud Tree), fraud risk management (COSO ERM, Fraud Triangle/Diamond/Pentagon), detection techniques (Benford's Law, analytics, behavioral biometrics, consortium data), prevention controls (SoD, mandatory vacation, Positive Pay, 3DS2, whistleblower programs), investigation process (digital forensics, chain of custody, interviewing), regulatory frameworks (SOX, FCPA, UK Bribery Act, GDPR, FFIEC Red Flags Rule, FINRA 3310), reporting (SARs for fraud, SEC 8-K, LE referrals), and fraud technology (AI/ML, case management).

Questions

80 scored questions

Time Limit

2 hours

Passing Score

75%

Exam Fee

$795 (ACAMS / Pearson VUE)

CAFS Exam Content Outline

ACAMS does not publish exact weights

Fraud Taxonomy and Types

ACFE Fraud Tree (asset misappropriation, corruption, financial statement fraud); external fraud (BEC, APP fraud, synthetic identity, ATO, card fraud, ACH fraud, check kiting, insurance, healthcare, procurement, loan fraud, insider trading).

ACAMS does not publish exact weights

Fraud Risk Management

COSO ERM, COSO ICIF, Fraud Triangle (Cressey), Fraud Diamond (Wolfe & Hermanson), Fraud Pentagon, fraud risk assessment, ACFE Report to the Nations statistics.

ACAMS does not publish exact weights

Detection Techniques

Benford's Law, data analytics, behavioral biometrics, device fingerprinting, velocity checks, consortium data, continuous auditing, behavioral red flags, tips/hotlines.

ACAMS does not publish exact weights

Prevention Controls

Segregation of duties, mandatory vacation/job rotation, tone at the top, whistleblower programs, 3DS2/SCA, Positive Pay, vendor due diligence, step-up authentication, training.

ACAMS does not publish exact weights

Investigation Process

Digital forensics (hash values, disk imaging), chain of custody, forensic interviewing (PEACE preferred), evidence preservation, SAR drafting for fraud, restitution/asset tracing, case management.

ACAMS does not publish exact weights

Regulatory and Reporting

SOX Sections 302/404/806, FCPA, UK Bribery Act 2010, UK Fraud Act 2006, Dodd-Frank and AMLA whistleblower programs, GDPR, FINRA Rule 3310, FFIEC Red Flags Rule, SEC 8-K disclosure, False Claims Act qui tam, SWIFT CSP.

How to Pass the CAFS Exam

What You Need to Know

  • Passing score: 75%
  • Exam length: 80 questions
  • Time limit: 2 hours
  • Exam fee: $795

Keys to Passing

  • Complete 500+ practice questions
  • Score 80%+ consistently before scheduling
  • Focus on highest-weighted sections
  • Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

CAFS Study Tips from Top Performers

1Master the ACFE Fraud Tree — occupational fraud (asset misappropriation, corruption, financial statement fraud) — and how each is detected/prevented
2Study the Fraud Triangle (pressure/opportunity/rationalization), Fraud Diamond (+capability), and Fraud Pentagon — and apply to case scenarios
3Know the major regulatory frameworks: SOX 302/404/806, FCPA, UK Bribery Act 2010, UK Fraud Act 2006, Dodd-Frank/AMLA whistleblower programs, FFIEC Red Flags Rule, FINRA 3310
4Memorize ACFE Report to the Nations statistics: tips are #1 detection, median loss ~$100-200K, median duration ~12 months, small orgs disproportionately affected
5Review fraud typology specifics — BEC variants (CEO fraud, vendor invoice fraud), APP fraud, synthetic identity, ATO, pig butchering, deepfake fraud (Arup 2024)
6Study Benford's Law and basic analytics techniques — leading-digit distribution, velocity rules, behavioral biometrics, device fingerprinting, consortium data
7Understand fraud/AML convergence under FinCrime operating models — shared data, unified case management, overlapping typologies (scams, crypto)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the CAFS exam?

CAFS is ACAMS' specialist certification for anti-fraud professionals, launched in November 2024. It validates knowledge of fraud taxonomy, risk management, detection, prevention, investigation, regulatory requirements, and fraud technology — with a special focus on the convergence of fraud with AML.

How many questions are on the CAFS exam?

The CAFS exam has approximately 80 questions to be completed in 2 hours. ACAMS does not publish all exam specifics publicly — verify on acams.org.

What is the passing score for CAFS?

The passing score is 75%. ACAMS does not publicly disclose scaled scoring details or first-time pass rates for CAFS.

What are the prerequisites for CAFS?

Candidates must complete the five-course CAFS program and provide evidence of 40 eligibility credits (similar to other ACAMS specialist certifications). The training is worth 17 ACAMS credits (+8 for the Virtual Classroom Series). Active ACAMS membership is required.

How much does the CAFS cost?

The exam fee is approximately $795. Additional costs apply for the five prerequisite courses and ACAMS membership. Prices are subject to change; verify on acams.org.

Does CAFS certification expire?

Yes. The credential is valid for 3 years. Recertification requires continuing education credits per ACAMS specialist-level policy and continuous active ACAMS membership.