Forensic Services

Our experienced team specialise in investigating and analysing the financial, economic and business consequences of disputes. We support clients and counsel in a broad range of areas including:

• Quantum of loss and damage
• Valuation in contentious circumstances
• Accounting disputes
• Expert determinations
• Delay and quantum analysis on capital projects
• Warranty claims and other shareholder disputes
• Insurance claims
• Contentious regulatory matters

International arbitration and litigation

We have extensive experience of delivering expert witness reports and testimony, both in international arbitration and litigation, across the Middle East and internationally.

Our team has a proven track record of dealing with disputes from the preliminary stages of assessing the merits of a case from a financial and economic standpoint, through to calculating damages, and where necessary providing expert witness evidence.

Our experts have delivered expert witness reports and testimony at arbitration centres under DIAC, LCIA, ICC, SIAC, UNCITRAL and other rules.

We also have experience acting as a court appointed expert in litigation in the UAE and across the Middle East.

Transaction disputes

Our team frequently work with sellers and purchasers to protect or enhance transaction value, both before and after a deal is signed.

We analyse and investigate the financial and valuation impact of breaches of warranty, and joint venture and completion account disputes. Members of our senior team regularly act as independent experts to determine disputes over completion accounts and other issues.

We can also offer pre-deal advice on accounting and financial reporting clauses in M&A agreements.

Capital project disputes

Disputes can arise as a result of delays, cost overruns or variations on large capital projects. We have a team of chartered engineers and construction industry specialists that can help when these situations materialise.

Our capital projects team has extensive experience of analysing critical path delays, project management, programming and other aspects of capital project disputes.

Our clients have turned to us when facing contract reset negotiations, when examining the financial and wq programming impacts of change, and where contentious proceedings require the explanation of programming and quantum aspects of the dispute.

• Project Readiness Reviews
• Commercial Process Redesigns
• Programme/Project Management Office (PMO)
• Contract Reviews
• Project Reviews
• Capital Project Dispute Support
• Post-Completion Reviews
• Project Portfolio Risk Assessments
• Capital Project Policies & Procedures

PwC’s Forensic Technology Solutions (FTS) team provides an extensive range of services that include Digital Forensics, Information Governance, Electronic Discovery, Data Analytics and Cyber Security. We provide a unique approach to complex business dispute and investigative matters, offering the latest technology to best serve our clients' needs.

Our global FTS practice has over 350 dedicated forensic technology professionals in 35 countries. With experience in global markets and focused industry support, we help clients to manage vast amounts of electronic data, navigating legal and business processes whilst maximising the value of information assets.

With a principal laboratory and data center in Dubai and satellite facilities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Lebanon, our forensic technology specialists can offer the following services:

Digital Forensics

• Forensic acquisition (imaging of electronic devices, mobile devices, computers, laptops and servers)
• Acquisition of emails or folders from servers
• Data recovery and reconstruction (Deleted file analysis)
• Establishment of Investigative Support Systems
• Phishing Investigations
• Mobile device forensics
• E-discovery solutions, management and litigation support
• Cyber Forensic Readiness planning
• Malware and Keylogger Analysis

Electronic Discovery

• Electronic evidence consulting
• Identification, preservation and collection
• Processing, search and analysis
• Technology assisted review
• Disclosure and production

Data Analytics

• Data Mining for Investigative Purposes
• Fraud analytics to identify trends/patterns and potential fraud
• User access analytics on sensitive databases
• Procurement analysis, Transactional and non-transactional Data Analytics, Database Forensics, Continuous Transaction Monitoring
• Visual Data analytics and interactive dashboards that present the data in a significant way
• Business data analytics to help describe, predict and improve business performance

Cyber Security

• Cyber incident response detection and recovery
• Malware analysis
• Data breach indicator assessment
• Game of Threats®
• Cybercrime detection and investigation

• Fraud Risk / Scenario assessment
• Development of strategies and policies for prevention of fraud, corruption and misconduct including code of conduct, whistleblowing policy and investigation policy
• Anti-bribery and corruption reviews
• Fraud awareness training
• Implementation of Whistleblower System
• Data Mining for Investigative Purposes
• Establishment of Investigative Support Systems

• Market abuse and rogue trade investigation
• KYC review and remediation
• Review of financial crime strategies, policies and procedures
• Regulatory investigation and remediation programs
• Transaction monitoring, sanctions and 3rd party payment reviews

Organisations are increasingly looking harder for growth opportunities in global markets. But with a world of opportunity comes a level of uncertainty. Regulators are also applying a higher level of scrutiny, and other stakeholders are demanding higher degrees of integrity. Trust and reputation in corporate relationships are vital. Our Corporate Intelligence team provides you with timely and insightful information with which to assist in making decisions to protect your organisation.

Our services include:

• Integrity due diligence
• Third party risk management solutions
• RADAR — PwC's real time risk intelligence monitoring tool
• Investigation support
• Strategic Intelligence
• Asset tracing and recovery
• Employment screening services

Integrity due diligence

In an increasingly regulated environment, you need to be proactive in protecting your brand and your reputation. It is possible to make better decisions, seize opportunities and react promptly to critical situations by collecting and merging information, data and news. We research people and companies, producing profiles and running background checks to help you manage your business integrity and reputational risk. We also research specific individuals, and large numbers of counterparties and partners, such as agents, intermediaries and suppliers.

We help you verify the information you hold, and find information not in your possession.

We focus on bribery and corruption as defined by international legislation and standards, including the UK’s Bribery Act and the US’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Third party risk management solutions

Our secure web based portal, MyThirdParty, provides an end-to-end solution to allow you to effectively manage your third parties, in line with your third party policy and procedures. A web-based solution, it’s globally accessible by your compliance team, individual business units and external third parties and is centrally managed and tailored to your requirements.

MyThirdParty enables you to conduct risk assessments and screening of each third party, request integrity due diligence, and ongoing monitor in order to provide a complete solution to your third party risk management requirements.

RADAR — PwC's real time risk intelligence monitoring tool

RADAR is an ‘early warning system’ which manages a broad spectrum of risks, financial, regulatory, compliance and reputational. Our unique RADAR technology efficiently scans electronic data, across foreign languages, seeking to detect negative information connected with a company, individual or organisation.

Customers provide us with large and small volumes of vendor, client and partner data to monitor on an ongoing basis. Our expert team of analysts review the matches, providing a report detailing any relevant risks, threats or vulnerabilities. RADAR also covers key social media channels, which in today’s world, is an increasingly important means of identifying risk.

Investigation support

The impact of doing business with the wrong person or company can be huge.

We research information on individuals and legal entities as part of our investigation activities. These range from finding witnesses to investigating parties that put in place suspicious transactions. We look specifically at the modus operandi, the existence of related parties and their locations.

Our team covers it all – the who, what, where, when and how. We specialise in conflict of interest identification and relationship mapping through data visualisation to clearly demonstrate the issues of concern to you.

Strategic Intelligence

For organisations focused on growth, there’s an increasing spotlight on overseas joint venture and merger and acquisition activity. But how confident are you that the joint venture or acquisition is the right one for your organisation?

Using our global data sources and extensive network of industry specialists, our factual reports will help you make decisions about joint ventures, mergers, acquisitions and strategic alignments. And the information we provide can also help you determine the right strategy to take in litigation; and assist you in adversarial situations like hostile or contested bids. Know your targets; know your enemy.

Whether you’re entering a new market or new sector, you need to know how business there is done. Our team prepare comprehensive reports, customised for you, covering political and business risks in those countries where there is little separation between politics and business.

Asset tracing and recovery

Do you suspect that assets have been moved or hidden in a deliberate attempt to conceal their existence and ownership? Are you looking to recover or restructure outstanding debt? Are you investigating suspected asset stripping or theft from your organisation? Are you owned money following a legal decision in your favour?

We specialise in establishing who owns global assets, whether individuals or corporations, to help you make informed strategic decisions or respond when assets are taken. Our work will to help you to maximise recoveries and challenge asset sheltering.

Employment screening services

We provide a range of employment screening services to ensure you hire the right people, and protect your investment in human capital. Our services include pre-employment screening, executive due diligence, and executive security risk profiling.

The Middle East is experiencing significant changes in almost every aspect. The government sector is asked to adopt higher standards of accountability, transparency and effective management of assets and resources. This requires a transformation in several aspects for the public sector to address expectations. Fighting corruption, transparency and communication are on the top of priorities.

In response, governments have taken steps towards anti-corruption, transparency, accountability and assets recovery to gain the trust of the public and foreign investors, however, there is always room for improvement. Our Forensic Public Sector Services team helps governments to establish better standards for transparency, frameworks for managing the risks of corruption and fraud, and using best practices and applied technologies for preventing and detecting error and unethical conduct.

Our team consists of experienced Arabic and English speakers who have first-hand knowledge of public sector across the Middle Eastern countries and advanced forensic, data analytics and intelligence capabilities to bring to the task.