Free practice exam
Certified Fraud Prevention Specialist (CFPS) practice questions
Practise fraud prevention fundamentals: how fraudsters think, common scam patterns, victim psychology, triage and evidence.
These 15 questions are separate from the real CFPS final exam, so you can see every answer here. Pick an option to check yourself, and use the chapter link to revise.
Score: 0 / 0 answered · 15 questions
1. The 'fraud triangle' describes three conditions that commonly lead to fraud. Which set is it?
Answer: B. Pressure, opportunity, rationalisation
Donald Cressey's fraud triangle: pressure (motive), opportunity, and rationalisation.
Study this in chapter 12. Why do scammers often move victims off a public platform to private messaging?
Answer: B. It removes platform moderation and makes reporting and evidence harder
Moving to private channels isolates the victim from warnings and moderation.
Study this in chapter 13. What best describes an advance-fee scam?
Answer: B. A victim is asked to pay a fee upfront to release a larger promised sum that never arrives
The defining feature is paying money now for a reward that does not exist.
Study this in chapter 24. In a 'pig butchering' scam, what typically happens?
Answer: B. A long trust-building relationship leads the victim into a fake investment platform
Scammers build rapport over weeks, then steer the victim to a fraudulent trading site showing fake gains.
Study this in chapter 25. A 'recovery' service contacts a scam victim promising to get their money back for a fee. What is this most likely?
Answer: B. A follow-on recovery scam targeting the same victim
Recovery scams re-victimise people. Real authorities do not charge an upfront fee to return stolen funds.
Study this in chapter 26. Someone contacts you claiming to be from your bank's fraud team and asks you to move money to a 'safe account'. What is it?
Answer: B. A classic impersonation scam — banks do not ask you to move money to protect it
'Safe account' requests are a well-known bank-impersonation script.
Study this in chapter 27. Which tactic most directly exploits urgency?
Answer: B. "Act in the next 30 minutes or your account will be closed"
Artificial deadlines stop people pausing to check.
Study this in chapter 38. Why do scam victims often stay silent?
Answer: B. Shame, embarrassment and fear of blame
Shame is a major barrier; non-judgemental language helps people report.
Study this in chapter 39. A caller already knows your name and the last four digits of your card. What should you conclude?
Answer: B. Knowing some details does not prove identity — data can be leaked or bought
Partial personal data is often used to sound credible. Hang up and call the number on your card.
Study this in chapter 310. When triaging a fresh scam report, what usually comes first?
Answer: B. Checking whether money can still be stopped and pointing the victim to their bank or payment provider fast
Speed matters most for any chance of stopping or recalling a payment.
Study this in chapter 411. Which report detail is most useful for linking cases together?
Answer: B. Reusable identifiers like wallet addresses, phone numbers, domains and handles
Shared identifiers connect separate reports to the same operation.
Study this in chapter 412. What is a reasonable first step if a report contains only one unverified claim?
Answer: B. Record it as unverified and look for corroborating reports or evidence
Single claims need corroboration before anyone is labelled publicly.
Study this in chapter 413. Why should you keep original files rather than only edited screenshots?
Answer: B. Originals preserve detail and integrity, which supports later verification
Unaltered originals, ideally with a hash, show the evidence has not been changed.
Study this in chapter 514. What is 'chain of custody'?
Answer: B. A record of who handled evidence, when, and what was done to it
Documenting handling helps evidence stay credible.
Study this in chapter 515. Where should most individual online fraud victims in the United States report?
Answer: B. The FBI's IC3 (ic3.gov) and the FTC (ReportFraud.ftc.gov), plus their bank
IC3 and the FTC are the main federal intake points; the bank or payment provider should be told immediately.
Study this in chapter 5
Ready for the real CFPS final exam?
The final uses different questions drawn from the same chapters. Track your attempts and study material in your course portal.
Authoritative sources
Independent primary sources used to check and corroborate the guidance on this page.
NIST National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE)US national framework for cybersecurity work roles and competencies.
Financial Action Task Force (FATF)Global AML/CFT standards referenced by financial-crime curricula.
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center — Annual ReportsPrimary loss and typology data used in fraud-investigation training.
US Federal Trade Commission — Consumer Sentinel Data BookOfficial complaint statistics for teaching fraud trend analysis.