Investigator vs fraud investigator

The differences between investigators and fraud investigators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an investigator, becoming a fraud investigator takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an investigator has an average salary of $71,406, which is higher than the $49,010 average annual salary of a fraud investigator.

The top three skills for an investigator include law enforcement agencies, management system and customer service. The most important skills for a fraud investigator are law enforcement agencies, investigative reports, and fraud investigations.

Investigator vs fraud investigator overview

	Investigator	Fraud Investigator
Yearly salary	$71,406	$49,010
Hourly rate	$34.33	$23.56
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	5,085	5,470
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	44	43
Years of experience	6	4

What does an investigator do?

Criminal investigators play an essential role in criminal justice and law enforcement. Their job entails solving open cases that may take them weeks or even months to accomplish. Collecting evidence, interviewing witnesses, and arresting suspects are among their many tasks. They work at every level of criminal justice and law enforcement. For criminal investigators to succeed in their profession, they should have sound judgment, strong communication skills, ethical standards, physical fitness, and empathy. They also benefit from strong job prospects, in addition to an exciting and rewarding job.

What does a fraud investigator do?

A fraud investigator specializes in investigating and identifying fraudulent activities within a company and its clients. Their responsibilities depend on their line of work or industry of employment. However, most of the time, their duties will revolve around devising strategies and systems to detect inconsistencies, monitoring suspicious transactions and accounts, conducting reviews to identify any security lapses or vulnerabilities in the procedures, and teaching staff how to notice any fraudulent activities. Furthermore, it is vital to implement the policies and regulations of the company.

Investigator vs fraud investigator salary

Investigators and fraud investigators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Investigator	Fraud Investigator
Average salary	$71,406	$49,010
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $119,000	Between $32,000 And $74,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Sacramento, CA
Highest paying state	California	New York
Best paying company	Apple	Deutsche Bank
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between investigator and fraud investigator education

There are a few differences between an investigator and a fraud investigator in terms of educational background:

	Investigator	Fraud Investigator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	California State University - Bakersfield

Investigator vs fraud investigator demographics

Here are the differences between investigators' and fraud investigators' demographics:

	Investigator	Fraud Investigator
Average age	44	43
Gender ratio	Male, 56.6% Female, 43.4%	Male, 49.6% Female, 50.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.5% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 4.7% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	4%

Differences between investigator and fraud investigator duties and responsibilities

Investigator example responsibilities.

Participate in and lead the controlled purchase of illegal narcotics and firearms to apprehend suspects.
Manage all business reporting to include; payroll, taxes, client billing, account reconciliations and compliance reports.
Manage corporate-wide document production relative to complex litigation cases.
Receive multiple letters of commendation for effective investigations that lead to successful prosecutions.
Collaborate with federal agencies, including the FBI, DEA, ATF and IRS.
Write a detail case report, and attach all supporting documentation necessary to write up SAR's where necessary per BSA.

Fraud investigator example responsibilities.

Manage corporate-wide document production relative to complex litigation cases.
Detect and investigate fraudulent transactions such as money laundering, check forgeries, unauthorize ACH transfers and debit card fraud.
Review ISO reports and maintain close contact with police agencies working on fraud investigations.
Pursue recovery of bank funds through ACH processes, restitution from perpetrator and customer through criminal and civil means.
Write suspicious activity reports, address fraud alerts, and other applicable AML processes in accordance with regulations and time limitations.
Work on the development of a client application site determining the AML decision making rules, alerts, validation and verification.

Investigator vs fraud investigator skills

Common investigator skills

Law Enforcement Agencies, 7%
Management System, 6%
Customer Service, 5%
Criminal Justice, 5%
Senior Level Management, 4%
Child Abuse, 4%

Common fraud investigator skills

Law Enforcement Agencies, 7%
Investigative Reports, 6%
Fraud Investigations, 6%
Criminal Justice, 6%
Financial Institutions, 4%
Fraud Claims, 4%

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Investigator
Investigator vs Fraud Investigator

Updated January 8, 2025

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