Certified Fraud Examiner Practice

Embezzlement specifically refers to the unlawful taking of property that has been entrusted to an individual's care. This definition captures the essence of the crime, which often involves a trusted employee or official misappropriating funds or assets that belong to someone else, typically an employer or organization. The key element is the breach of trust, where the individual has legal access to the property but uses it for personal gain without permission.

While options like the theft of cash directly from customers and the diversion of company funds for personal use touch on aspects of financial misconduct, they do not fully encompass the idea of embezzlement, which explicitly involves the misappropriation of assets entrusted to the individual. Fraudulently obtaining a loan, on the other hand, pertains to a different form of deception and does not involve the concept of misusing entrusted assets, which is central to embezzlement. Thus, the correct definition of embezzlement is rooted in the breach of trust inherent in managing assets on behalf of others.