Investigative resources and acumen are front and center in this month's issue and auxiliary online coverage. Aite Group has disseminated new, albeit terrifying estimates about the toll fraud exacts each year on the p&c insurance industry. Building upon the $30 billion figure that has haunted many a carrier, Aite projects the staggering fraud "tax" will reach $80 billion by 2015.

In this month's cover story, you'll hear from veteran Aite analyst Stephen Applebaum, who declares, quite simply, that this is war. The analogy isn't as dramatic as it seems. So how well do we "know our enemies," in this case, increasingly desperate fraudsters?

Armed with updated statistics and knowledge about emerging schemes, we are preparing for battle in a war with no immediate end in sight. Our survival—in a competitive business—depends on four main components: technology, people, processes and, well, true grit. And because a disheartened troop is not fit for battle, Barry Zalma explores employee treatment and motivations in the online companion, "Are Your Special Investigators Being Compensated Fairly?" Zalma poses the question of whether special investigators are underplaying their professionalism, an issue affecting virtually all ranks of the claims profession.