Abstract: The research subject is behavioral characteristics of employees prone to opportunistic behavior in the corporate environment. The research goal is the identification of behavioral characteristics of employees prone to opportunistic behavior and to develop practical recommendations for its diagnosis and prevention at both the personnel selection stage and during the work process. In achieving this goal, the following tasks were addressed: 1. An analysis of personality typology and behavioral patterns characteristic of employees prone to opportunistic behavior was conducted. 2. Models and theoretical approaches to explaining corporate fraud (fraud triangle, MICE model, fraud diamond, etc.) were summarized. 3. Key behavioral indicators of deviant behavior were systematized in the context of pre- and post-contractual interactions. 4. Recommendations for identifying employees with a high level of ethical risk and reducing the likelihood of internal violations were formulated, including psychodiagnostic, organizational-cultural, and control-analytical measures. The research methodology includes analysis and synthesis of domestic and foreign scientific literature in the fields of organizational behavior, applied psychology, and corporate security; comparative analysis of fraud risk models. The scientific novelty lies in the integration of behavioral and organizational-structural approaches to interpreting opportunistic behavior, as well as in the proposal of a comprehensive risk assessment and monitoring system for employees in the dynamics of labor relations. The article substantiates the need for a differentiated approach to diagnosing deviant behavior at the pre-contractual and post-contractual stages. Examples of possible incidents of intra-firm opportunism are discussed, including cases of data leaks and abuses in the IT sphere, which confirm the significance of developing preventive and adaptive control mechanisms. Many organizations struggle to manage the risk of opportunism from employees as it is often an uncomfortable topic for discussion and exposure to the public eye. Therefore, identifying workers prone to opportunism is an important step in investigating opportunistic behavior, as the speed and manner of detecting opportunism can significantly influence the scale of opportunism and can affect the company’s employees: they will know that fraud will eventually be detected and will lead to certain sanctions. This will help reduce the frequency of wrongful actions in the future.

Keywords: opportunism, opportunistic behavior, corporate fraud, corporate fraud prevention, employee personality traits, fraud triangle, employee deviant behavior, prevention of opportunistic behavior, psychodiagnostics of job applicants, organizational ethical climate