How to keep AI from taking your job

By Benjamin R. David, D.A. 

Are you afraid that you might be replaced by a computer? Every day there are stories across industries about the rise of artificial intelligence (AI). Many professionals are looking into the future and wondering aloud if humans will be necessary and what the new normal will look like.

I have great news for accountants and auditors. You will have job security for life if you learn how to detect fraud, collect the right evidence, and come into a courtroom to testify about it. A computer cannot do these jobs for several reasons.

First, people who commit crimes, especially sophisticated white-collar criminals, know the importance of covering their tracks. They will not leave a digital footprint if a paper one will do. In other cases, defendants will weaponize technology to help conceal their crimes — for example, by leaving a cell phone behind to create an alibi that they were away from the scene of a crime during a relevant time period. We need to explore creative ways to defeat these methods.

Second, in a court system that demands accuracy and enshrines equal protection, justice officials are increasingly leery of machines that are trained to detect patterns but not interpret what those patterns mean. Data, especially from the internet, can be biased and lead to unequal treatment of people. In a courtroom in Washington state, an AI-enhanced cell phone video was kept out of evidence because it was deemed unreliable and not subject to peer review. Similar reasoning was employed by judges in Ohio and Illinois in rejecting Cybercheck and ShotSpotter technology that allegedly placed defendants at murder scenes.

Third, and most importantly, the Constitution guarantees criminal defendants the right to confront and cross-examine their accusers. Siri cannot take the witness stand. Unless two-thirds of both the U.S. House and Senate and three-fourths of the states agree to rewrite the Sixth Amendment, people, not machines, will be necessary to help juries follow the money.

The bottom line: Your first job is to make sure you keep yours. Become indispensable by learning how to unmask fraud and testify about it in a courtroom.

A North Carolina lawyer, Benjamin David has served as an elected district attorney since 2004. He is a past president of the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys and currently holds executive office in the National District Attorneys Association. 

WANT MORE INFORMATION FROM BEN? Check out his on-demand course from the Institute of Internal Auditors: “Why Internal Auditors Should Think Like a Prosecutor” (5 CPE credits).  

Once an accountant or auditor uncovers a financial crime, the work of convincing a prosecutor to devote time and resources to take a case to trial begins. By learning to think like a prosecutor, auditors and accountants will be more effective at catching white-collar criminals, more likely to receive restitution for their clients, and more confident of a conviction. 