Long Beach City Auditor Introduces Mobile App for Reporting Fraud, Waste and Abuse of Taxpayers Money
Long Beach, California (PRWEB) April 17, 2015 -- The Office of the Long Beach City Auditor (California) has launched the My Auditor mobile app to allow citizens and City staff to report incidents of fraud, waste and abuse. The application is part of the overall strategy of the City Auditor’s Office to ensure the transparency and accountability of government in the delivery of services to the citizens of Long Beach.
My Auditor’s central feature is a fraud-reporting tool, enabling citizens and city officials to send in reports to the City Auditor’s Office either anonymously or with follow-up contact information. The reports can also include a picture and optional address or GPS coordinates to help pinpoint where the fraud is taking place. Officials from the City Auditor’s Office then handle the incoming requests and investigate the information provided.
Not all fraud incidents reported to the City Auditor’s Fraud Hotline are against the City of Long Beach, so the mobile application also helps citizens to understand if the fraud is against the city, county, state or federal government, and even directs them to the correct government agency. News, press releases and the latest financial and performance audit reports are also included in the application, providing the full cycle of feedback to citizens in the audit and investigation process.
Finally, a push notification service is integrated into the application, allowing the City Auditor’s Office to push out information if an active fraud scheme is taking place in the City and to allow citizens to stay connected with the City Auditor’s Office.
“With the release of these mobile applications we are seeking to facilitate the rapid reporting of incidents of fraud, waste and abuse against the City, which will limit the City’s exposure to one of the most costly forms of crime,” said Laura Doud, the City Auditor. “By streamlining the reporting process, while preserving anonymity, we hope to continue to keep the impact of fraud at bay in the City of Long Beach.”
Purple Forge, is the service provider behind the My Auditor mobile application, and is the leading provider of mobile apps to governments at all levels in North America. Supporting public facing government services of all types, including 511/Road Conditions, 311/Problem Reporting, Elections, Parks and Recreation and Pet Adoption, Purple Forge continues to lead the way in the delivery of both single and multi-departmental mobile applications for governments.
"The My Auditor mobile application will not only help to increase citizen access to fraud reporting, but will also help the City Auditor’s Office to manage their costs by moving fraud reporting from calls to simple screen taps," stated John Craig, VP Sales and Marketing of Purple Forge. "We are glad to be part of their continuing digital strategy to engage citizens on the latest mobile devices.”
About Purple Forge
Purple Forge (http://www.purpleforge.com) sells subscription based services to organizations looking to engage their stakeholders using the latest mobile application technology and leveraging community engagement and social networking best practices. Purple Forge is an award-winning firm led by seasoned mobile communications and Internet technology veterans. Our mobile applications allow organizations to broadcast, share, and receive feedback from their target audience real-time, allowing them to foster long-term, engaged relationships.
Contact: John Craig, john(dot)craig(at)purpleforge(dot)com
About the Long Beach City Auditor
For more than 100 years, Long Beach residents have elected a City Auditor (http://www.cityauditorlauradoud.com) to act as an independent watchdog ensuring that City government is transparent and accountable, and public funds are being spent effectively, correctly and responsibly. City Auditor Laura Doud, CPA, was first elected in 2006 and re-elected in 2010 and 2014. The Long Beach City Charter authorizes the City Auditor as the general auditor of the City and of every department, commission and office thereof. The City Auditor is charged with performing these core services: conduct financial and performance audits, review and sign all city disbursements, administer all city employee wage garnishments, and investigate complaints of fraud, waste and abuse against the City reported through the City Auditor’s Fraud Hotline. The City Auditor’s Office recently released a technology best practices report that discusses local government’s growing adoption of mobile technologies and other digital services to enhance government services and citizen collaboration. This report can be found at: http://www.cityauditorlauradoud.com/common/docs/Digital%20&%20E-Gov%20Report%20Final%2020150318.pdf
Contact: James Lam, james(dot)lam(at)longbeach(dot)gov
John Craig, Purple Forge, http://www.purpleforge.com, +1 6138632673, [email protected]
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