Beyond the Fraud Triangle: Developing a Technology-Enabled Theory of Fraud in the Digital Accounting Era

Accounting environments increasingly rely on cloud systems, automated processes, distributed technologies, and artificial intelligence. Although established fraud models provide useful explanations of human behavior, they give limited attention to the role of technology in contemporary accounting systems. This study addresses this limitation by developing the Technology-Enabled Fraud Framework (TEFF), which incorporates technological conditions into the explanation of how financial misconduct can arise and be concealed. • Design/Methodology/Approach: The study draws on Socio-Technical Systems Theory, socio-materiality, and Affordance Theory to develop a four-dimensional framework from the forensic accounting and Accounting Information Systems literature. • Findings: The framework comprises four constructs: Digital Pressure, Technological Opportunity, Digital Rationalization, and Technological Capability. Each construct captures a different way in which digital systems may influence fraud-related behavior. Four propositions are developed to explain the proposed relationships among these dimensions and technology-enabled financial misconduct. • Theoretical & Practical Implications: The framework extends fraud theory by considering these conditions alongside human behavior and has implications for internal control and continuous auditing. • Originality/Value: The study offers a socio-technical perspective in which technology is considered an important component of contemporary fraud processes.