Using data analytics to tackle fraud and error

Recommendation 1: The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) should set out a plan for how it will support public bodies across government to make best use of data analytics to tackle fraud and error. In putting this plan together, PSFA should engage with and consider the work of the Government Digital Service on ?modern digital government?, and the work of other cross-government functions such as the Government Finance Function.

Recommendation 10: a) The Public Sector Fraud Authority should report to Parliament on whether it believes updated legislation is required to make the best use of data analytics to tackle fraud and error; b) the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) and the Government Digital Service (GDS) should provide specific advice about how to best publish details about analytics tools to fight fraud and error on the algorithmic transparency records, given concerns around revealing control weaknesses; and c) DSIT and GDS should encourage public bodies to report on the impact of data analytics on different customer groups

Recommendation 2: The Public Sector Fraud Authority should maintain a library of digital counter-fraud controls that public bodies can use to find ways to address their fraud risks. This should show the returns on investment that other public bodies have achieved through the controls.

Recommendation 3: The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) and HM Treasury should develop a mechanism that allows public bodies to pool some of the costs, resources and savings associated with fraud and error data analytics. This might include PSFA managing a portfolio of seed funding in projects across government, with savings shared between the public body and the seed fund for use in future proposals.

Recommendation 4: a) HM Treasury should make use of the National Fraud Initiative mandatory and agree with the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) the criteria for where public bodies should use other centrally provided tools; and b) HM Treasury and PSFA should review the charging model for PSFA central services to ensure they do not dissuade public bodies from making savings.

Recommendation 5: a) The Public Sector Fraud Authority should review government functional standards and ?NOVA? standardised functional processes to make recommendations to other functions for where and how they could better tackle fraud and error; b) The Government Digital Service should update its guidance on digital development processes to include counter-fraud and error perspectives as a key user, to ensure counter-fraud and error data and controls are built into new systems.

Recommendation 6: The Public Sector Fraud Authority and the Government Digital Service (GDS) should maintain an overview of the key datasets required to support most fraud and error data analytics, and work with the bodies that maintain those datasets to create a mechanism enabling the sharing of quality and timely data that is consistent and in an understandable format. GDS should also set out how its ambitions in its blueprint and its existing work can help to reduce fraud and error, and set out an implementation plan to put these into place.

Recommendation 7: a) The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) and the Government Digital Service (GDS)should build on the Digital Economy Act 2017 data-sharing process to introduce a managed process to support public bodies to share data. This managed process should include an overview of the pipeline of potential agreements, standardised templates, clear decision points and key performance indicators around approval time; b) PSFA and GDS should also advise public bodies on how to ensure clear ongoing governance arrangements over shared data to manage the risk of fraudsters gaining access to multiple systems through access to one; and c) PSFA should further explore the use of non-government and private sector databases such as the fraud databases produced by Cifas.

Recommendation 8: The Public Sector Fraud Authority should work with the Government Digital Service to publish a playbook on how public bodies can develop the multidisciplinary team and capability to develop and deploy counter-fraud data analytics.

Recommendation 9: The Public Sector Fraud Authority and HM Treasury should encourage departments to keep their fraud and error data analytics under review, and optimise them accordingly to ensure that they are bringing the maximum fraud and error savings.