How To Protect Your Business From Fraud

As a growing business, onboarding new clients is incredibly exciting. But with excitement, you still have to make sure you are taking the necessary precautions to protect your business. 

There’s so many drawbacks to fraud, but one of the biggest (and most annoying parts) is that it can be incredibly expensive and slow down your business from growing how you’d like. 

Here are a few ways to protect yourself and your business from damages caused by Fraud:

1. Always follow the same onboarding process. 

Never let the excitement of a dollar amount cause you to rush into a business arrangement. Stick to the onboarding system you’ve created for your business each and every time. 

2. Always get a W9 & Articles of Incorporation 

Many businesses you deal with will either be an LLC or a Corporation (C or S Corp)

Make sure you get both documents, legally you have to have them on file. 

If you deal with a sole proprietor then you’ll want a copy of their EIN letter they were sent by the IRS and their business license if their city or state requires them to have one. 

3. A Signed Agreement 

Always keep a copy of your signed engagement letter or contract in every clients file. 

This protects both you and your client. 

4. Drivers License

Remote work is becoming the standard. And in lieu of meeting or working with clients face to face, having a way to verify that you are speaking with someone who is not trying to harm you or your business is CRITICAL to the growth of your business.

5. Secured Cloud Server

In order to protect both you and your clients, you should store all sensitive information in a special encrypted electronic filing cabinet. This prevents data breaches your business may be liable for.

This gives both you and your clients peace of mind that their data is protected.

I recommend: Revver Docs or DropSecure (links below)

As a bookkeeper I deal with incredibly sensitive information so I go the extra mile to make sure all my clients documents are super secured. 

Doing business with others is supposed to be a pleasurable and enjoyable experience. Not a nightmare.

I know this sounds like a lot of hoops to make a new client jump through, especially if you’re a small business that’s just begun.

But in all actuality, after having worked for established businesses and Fortune 500 companies, this is all just basic stuff any good business would need to prove that the person they are talking to are in fact who they claim to be.

And if you get any push back just remember that anyone who genuinely wants to do business with you, will most likely comply. You can always explain the above reasons to them, if they still do not understand that could potentially be a huge red flag.

Thank you for making it this far. If you’ve found any value in this post, please like, share, and comment. 

Links:

DropSecure https://dropsecure.com/

Revver Docs https://go.revverdocs.com/