‘Tis the Season for Holiday Scams! Avoid Fraud During the Holidays

Scams and fraud are always something businesses should be on alert for. However, this is particularly the case during the holiday season. In fact, data from the FBI and consumer protection organizations has found that scams tend to increase during the holiday season when more people are spending money, and some are on the lookout for a quick payday. Here are our tips for preventing fraud. 

Practice Good Cybersecurity

An important way to prevent becoming a victim of a scam during the holidays is to practice good cybersecurity. This involves many things such as keeping antivirus definitions up to date, updating other important software for patches, and ensuring employees are properly trained. Be sure to educate employees about things such as phishing scams and other ways that can compromise your company’s data. 

Don’t Forget Physical Security

While many holiday scams occur virtually, physical security is still important as well. Be sure that your business is locked up at night. If you keep large amounts of cash on hand, consider purchasing a safe. Physical security is particularly important for stores that sell small but expensive items. Consider how to locate best and protect these to prevent theft. 

Carefully Plan Personnel Practices

While we typically think about security threats from external people, the holidays can be a time when theft occurs internally as well. While you want to assume that your staff are going to act ethically, background checks are a good general practice when onboarding employees. Additionally, cross-training staff members is a good way to reduce the likelihood that one person could commit fraud undetected. 

Beware of Return Fraud

One of the biggest scams during the holiday season is return fraud. Here, people will acquire a stolen item (or steal it directly) and then attempt to return it without a paper receipt or digital receipt. Be on the lookout for this type of scam. Using thermal paper to print paper receipts for all customers and requiring a paper receipt in order to get cash back are good policies. 

Take Countermeasures

There are many things that you can do in order to prevent theft. One way is to use counterfeit currency detectors. These simple pens can detect counterfeit bills, saving you the frustration of becoming a victim of counterfeit fraud. 

Final Thoughts

The holidays are a wonderful time but can also be a time when you are more susceptible to fraud. Protect yourself from holiday scams using these tips. Of course, you can always trust POS paper to provide you with all your business needs from thermal receipt paper to anti-fraud products.