Businessman uses Umbrella to sail to safety.

A Legal Week Intelligence and Kroll survey of in-house lawyers, partners and senior executives has found that while almost 90% of respondents said their company's compliance programme specifically addresses bribery and corruption, the extent to which safeguards are put in place to detect and prevent those risks varied greatly.

Falling foul of bribery and corruption charges can be disastrous for any business. Indeed, for some it can taint their entire industry. Legal and compliance teams face constant pressures to stay one step ahead of the game and snuff out any misconduct before it takes place. But while companies are doing more than ever to bolster their anti-bribery regimes, many still lack the tools and early warning systems that could help flag these risks in advance.

Almost three quarters of those surveyed said their company gives compulsory anti-corruption training to all employees, while almost two thirds said their company carries out onsite anti-corruption spot checks or third-party audits. However, fewer than half said their company analyses internal data to identify anomalies and flag potential risks – something that this report argues can give legal and compliance teams more of an edge in policing bribery and corruption.