What Kind of Evidence Do I Need to Become an SEC Whistleblower?

Discovering potential securities violations may prompt you to take action by reporting your findings to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). After all, it’s the right thing to do to protect both investors and the public. 

But, if you are going to risk it all to blow the whistle, it may also be in your best interests to provide the SEC with the evidence they need to impose sanctions on the violating party to win a whistleblower award. With that in mind, we cover the requirements for obtaining a whistleblower award and what evidence will help the SEC’s investigation, below. 

The Criteria for a Whistleblower Award

For an individual to be entitled to a whistleblower award, specific criteria must be met. First, the information provided must be original and given voluntarily. This means you need to come forward before the SEC approaches you with questions, and you need to be the first whistleblower to report the tip in question. 

Next, the SEC needs to be able to take enforceable action against the individual or company engaging in the securities fraud. This is where the evidence you gather will come into play. Finally, the SEC must recover sanctions in excess of $1 million, 10 to 30 percent of which you’ll be entitled to if you’ve met all the other requirements for a whistleblower award. 

Evidence to Support Your Claims

You could be entitled to up to 30 percent of whatever the SEC is able to recover. If you are hoping to increase the amount of your whistleblower award, the evidence you provide to the SEC must be valuable. 

Financial transactions and records, confidential internal documents, recordings, email exchanges and any other hard evidence that clearly shows the party participating in fraud can only help their case and your chances of an award.

Get Help from an SEC Whistleblower Lawyer

If you have further questions about what kinds of evidence you might need to blow the whistle on investment fraud, reach out to an experienced SEC whistleblower lawyer at Meissner Associates. You can call 1-866-764-3100 or submit the secure contact form at the bottom of this page when you are ready to schedule a confidential tip evaluation.