Don't Take the Risk of Fraud Lightly: Steps You Can Take to Protect Your Business

07/15/2015

While completely eliminating incidences of payment fraud may be impossible, there are definitely steps you can all take to minimize the risk of exposure. By taking daily precautions, you can make it that much harder for fraudsters to perpetrate their schemes.

Some basic tips for avoiding fraud:

• Adhere strictly to your company’s security policies; they put them there for a reason.
• Always use strong passwords to thwart attempts to hack your accounts.
• Never share your passwords or let someone else log-in to your computer.
• Enroll in your bank’s security alerts, notifying you if there’s suspicious account activity.
• No financial institution, including Fifth Third Bank, will ever send you an e-mail asking you to verify or supply personal information.
• Never send personal information via e-mail unless it is to a trusted source and use some type of encryption.
• Never open unsolicited e-mails from unknown e-mail addresses. Set your spam filter on high to block suspicious communications.
• Exercise reasonable care when downloading software and opening email attachments. Never download or open an e-mail attachment from an unknown email address.
• Install a firewall and both anti-virus and anti-spyware software. Keep your virus definitions and browser and security software current.
• Don’t write your PIN number on your credit card.
• Make sure your mobile phone number and other contact information are registered with your card issuer so they can verify transactions.
• Don’t let your commercial card out of your sight when making a transaction.
• When entering a PIN into a card-reader or ATM, use your free hand or body to shield the number from prying eyes.
• Always review receipts after using your corporate credit card and report any suspicious charges.
• Be sure to keep the card issuer’s phone number in your mobile phone’s contact list in case your card is lost or stolen.
• If shopping on the Internet, use only secure, trusted sites.
• Where available, take advantage of Europay Mastercard Visa (EMV) credit/debit cards with embedded microchips which dramatically reduce point-of-sale (POS) fraud.

Beyond these proactive steps, businesses should also take advantage of protective tools offered by Fifth Third Bank, such as Trusteer malware detection software and two-factor token authentication for more secure login.

Fifth Third offers state-of-the-art security technology through our Security Suite, which can help protect your business from the growing threats of check fraud and ACH fraud using advanced tools such Positive Pay to monitor and detect unusual or unauthorized activities, as well as debit and credit blocks on accounts.

Fifth Third and Fifth Third Bank are registered trademarks of Fifth Third Bancorp. Deposit and credit products provided by Fifth Third Bank.