7 Check Fraud Prevention Tips You Need to Know

Thanks to our sluggish American economy, Check Fraud is on the rise and can be very devastating to consumers and businesses alike. It can take years and sometimes decades to recover once you have been a victim of this horrible crime.

However, these 7 important tips are ones you can put into place today, to help prevent becoming a victim tomorrow.

1. Purchase checks that have “true” watermarks and foil holograms which are harder for criminals to reproduce. In addition, only order your checks from bank-approved check printing institutions.

2. When ordering or printing your own checks, make sure your name, address and phone number are correctly printed onto your checks. Do not include your social security number, phone number or driver’s license number on your checks.

3. Store your checkbook, unused checks, canceled checks and all banking documents in a secure place. Never leave your financial information lying around the house or on your desk top.

4. Destroy your old canceled checks and bank invoices using a paper shredding machine. If you don’t have one, some banks will allow you to use their paper shredders for free or for a small fee. Alternatively, consider using a confidential shredding service for added convenience and peace of mind.

5. Never write a check out for CASH! While writing checks out for CASH are acceptable at almost all banking institutions, it is the easiest way for criminals to steal and cash your personal or business checks. Checks that are written out to CASH can be cashed in quite easily which means your funds are “out the door” in a hurry.

6. Purchase a special check-writing pen! Criminals love to use chemicals on your checks to erase the important things (check-washing) and you can help deter chemical alterations on your checks by purchasing special check-writing pens that utilize gel inks.

7. Never give your banking information to “people” over the phone, especially to telemarketers who call your home trying to sell you something or to charities who call your home wanting a donation. Ask these types of individuals and companies to mail you the information via postal mail for payment/donation consideration.

There are many things that you can do to protect yourself against check fraud and these 7 easy-to-follow tips will help you to become a smarter consumer.

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