The security risks associated with check transactions pose a significant concern for businesses that frequently utilize checks. The prevalence of checks provides an opportunity for fraudsters to create and pass counterfeit checks, resulting in substantial financial losses.
Why it matters: as a responsible business owner, it is essential to take measures to protect your company from such criminal activities.
The Perks of Positive Pay
How can we help you mitigate check fraud? Positive Pay is a powerful tool that enhances the security of your check transactions. It’s a type of automated fraud detection technology designed to detect and prevent counterfeit checks. By leveraging this service, you can add an extra layer of security to safeguard your business.
Core Bank offers positive pay for both ACH and check.
Check Positive Pay: This method automatically matches each check presented against a list of issued checks provided by the company. If any discrepancies arise, the system alerts the financial institution and the company.
ACH Positive Pay: This service empowers users to filter or block all incoming ACH debits before they are authorized to post to an account, providing an additional layer of protection.
Positive Pay enables your business to stay one step ahead of criminals and safeguard your financial accounts against fraud. Please contact Treasury Services to start protecting your business today!
Business Email Compromise Scams
Business email compromise (BEC) scams have become a significant threat to businesses worldwide. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) revealed that the total value of redirected funds has exceeded a staggering $12 billion.
Why it matters: as the value of funds redirected through BEC scams continues to rise, it is vital for businesses to be proactive in protecting themselves from these fraudulent activities.
Reports indicate that BEC scams have been documented in all 50 states of the United States and across 150 countries worldwide, which is a clear indication that the threat is widespread and affects businesses regardless of their location or scale of operation. BEC scams can occur in different variations, but they all share the common goal of manipulating victims into transferring funds to fraudulent accounts.
Tactics and Red Flags
To protect your business from falling victim to BEC scams, it is crucial to be aware of common red flags indicating potentially fraudulent activities. These include:
- Exclusively email-based communication that seems urgent or out of the ordinary.
- Poorly crafted emails, incorrect email signatures or the use of formal language that is atypical for the sender.
- Transactions involving new vendors or contacts.
- Transfer requests made when senior officials are out of the office.
- Large fund transfers to unfamiliar recipients.
- Requests made near the end of the day, weekends or holidays.
- Funds being sent to personal accounts when the company typically only deals with business accounts.
- Receiving accounts with no prior history of large fund transfers.
Mitigating the risks associated with BEC scams requires a proactive approach and robust security measures. Here are some tips to help safeguard your business:
- Establish a secondary means of communication for verification purposes, especially when dealing with urgent or suspicious requests.
- Implement a policy for identifying and reporting BEC and similar email scams within your organization.
- Exercise caution during phone conversations and avoid disclosing sensitive information.
- Verify any changes in payment type or location mentioned in legal documents before distributing funds.
- Educate your internal staff and key financial officers about the risks and characteristics of BEC scams.
In the event of discovering Business email compromise or a fraudulent transfer, act quickly:
- contact the bank.
- Report the incident to your local FBI office.
- File a compliant at ic3.gov or bec.ic3.gov.
At Core Bank, the safety and security of your assets are always our highest priority, so we provide you with the tools and resources you need to stay up to date in protecting your identity and assets. By understanding the evolving tactics employed by scammers, recognizing red flags and implementing effective security measures, businesses can mitigate the risk of falling victim to BEC scams and safeguard their finances and reputation in an increasingly digital landscape.
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