What is a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) whistleblower?
Citizen and corporate whistleblowers represent an important component in identifying corruption and fiscal wrongdoing with big business, particularly bribery. A whistleblower is someone that provides the government original information about wrongdoing at a company. By “blowing the whistle” on illegal practices, a FCPA whistleblower is able to help the government stop these acts. Several federal laws include provisions encouraging and financially rewarding those citizens who bravely step up and help the government enforce laws regarding illegal business practices. Newly expanded by the Dodd-Frank act of 2010, the US whistleblower program identifies breaches of the Federal Corrupt Practices Act’s provisions and forwards them to the attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Whistleblowers in these cases often report bribes given to foreign officials. The whistleblower, who can remain anonymous, stands to receive compensation equaling at least 10% of any penalties imposed
