5 Ways to Protect Your Small Business from Account Fraud
As you may or may not know, October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month. In recognition of this, we wanted to take a moment to share some tips related to the security of our small business customers. Corporate account takeover is a type of fraud where thieves gain access to a business’ finances to make unauthorized transactions, including transferring funds from the company, creating and adding new fake employees to payroll, and stealing sensitive customer information that may not be recoverable.
With that said, we recommend following these five simple tips to consider in order to keep your small business safe from potential fraud:
1. Educate your employees.
You and your employees are the first line of defense against corporate account takeover. A strong security program paired with employee education about the warning signs, safe practices, and responses to a suspected takeover are essential to protecting your company and customers.
2. Protect your online environment.
It is important to protect your cyber environment just as you would your cash and physical location. Do not use unprotected internet connections. Encrypt sensitive data and keep updated virus protections on your computer. Use complex passwords and change them periodically.
3. Partner with your bank to prevent unauthorized transactions.
Talk to your bank about programs that safeguard you from unauthorized transactions. At SSB Bank, we have a 4-layer authentication system (more than the usual 3 for extra security). Additionally, because we know you personally, we detect problems and suspicious activity faster than most other big banks.
4. Pay attention to suspicious activity and react quickly.
Look out for unexplained account or network activity, pop ups, and suspicious emails. If detected, immediately contact your financial institution, stop all online activity and remove any systems that may have been compromised. Keep records of what happened.
5. Understand your responsibilities and liabilities.
The account agreement with your bank will detail what commercially reasonable security measures are required in your business. It is critical that you understand and implement the security safeguards in the agreement. If you don’t, you could be liable for losses resulting from a takeover. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about your responsibilities with your SSB Business accounts.
More than anything, being proactive with you account and ensuring you have the right systems in place is extremely important. Do not wait for something serious to occur with your business accounts to react. It is much more difficult (and more costly, in some cases) to respond to a cyber attack than to try and prevent one.
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