Check fraud is a very real threat that can cripple a small business. 70% of organizations experienced check fraud last year. We’ve helped victims of it strengthen their security protocols. Common check fraud techniques include photocopying valid checks to deposit multiple times, creating fraudulent checks with stolen bank account information, and soaking stolen checks in chemical washes to remove the toner and replace with a different payee name and amount.
The movie “Catch Me If You Can” tells the story of Frank Abagnale’s early life as a con man, check forger, and impostor. Not proud of his past, Frank has dedicated his adult years helping the government and thousands of corporations combat identity theft, cybercrime, and financial fraud. Watch this 3-minute video of Frank’s $2 tip and go get one!
Here again, are some of our other top tips to guard against fraud:
Activate positive pay with your bank to ensure that your checks are cashed as intended.
Mask your bank account info on your paper checks to avoid check washing schemes.
Pay vendors and reimburse employees via e-Payment, transferring funds directly between bank accounts.
Use online timesheets with GPS tracking on smartphones to protect against buddy-punching.
Separate financial duties to ensure no one person controls all parts of a financial transaction.
Automation is one of the pillars of our firm’s core focus. QuickBooks' Banking screen delivers on AI with its quest for zero data entry. When you connect QuickBooks to your bank and credit card accounts, your data is imported so you don't have to type it. Then you can use QuickBooks’ bank rules to automatically categorize and record the activity. It's like putting your bookkeeping on autopilot. …
It is important to keep supporting documentation on the use of a company's funds, whether funds are spent via cash, company check, wire, ACH or company credit card. Many businesses use a company credit card for making purchases because of the ease of making payment. Recording the purchase activity on credit cards can be automated by connecting the bank feed to…
We will periodically post summaries of our experiences with other small businesses in an effort to share problems and solutions and learn from each other. The Problem: A growing company with 50+ employees suddenly discovered that they were the victims of check fraud. The on-staff bookkeeper had forged the principal's signature on several checks made payable to herself. The company had many…
When employees work in a state in which their employer does not otherwise operate, the employer may then have sufficient nexus with the state to be subject to its tax code.
Intuit's sixth annual QuickBooks Connect conference was a tangible example of delivering on their bold mission to Power Prosperity. It brought together thousands of business owners, accountants, and solution providers for three days under one roof. The main stage provided innovation from business leaders like Jennifer Hyman, founder of Rent the Runway, inspiration from actor-turned-venture-capitalist Ashton Kutcher, and automation from…
Paper documents are vulnerable. Paper is fragile and subject to damage through fire and flooding, and physical documents are easily stolen. Digital documents stored in the cloud, on the other hand, are secure and can be backed up to multiple different locations automatically. Paper documents also cost too much in labor -- filing, searching for and re-creating when lost. Converting…
A story of email fraud We received an email from an existing client authorizing a payment by wire to one of their vendors and including wire instructions. The wire request was for a large amount, but not out of the ordinary for that organization ($1.4 million). The body of the emailed wire request showed a trail of emails below it,…
5 Ways Your Accountant Can Help You Prevent Fraud Has your business been a victim of fraud? A couple of years ago, a cloud accounting client forwarded us an email that they had just received from a Police Officer in another state. That police department was investigating a check that an individual was trying to cash that was…
Unfortunately, employee fraud happens. One day we got a call from a business that had been referred to us. They were a growing company with 50+ employees. They needed a new accounting department. It was urgent, they said. Their employee bookkeeper had just quit the last day of the month. One of her duties was printing the checks for the…
