By:   Dorothy Riggs, CFE Fraud activity is ever increasing and diverse in the methods in which it is executed.   Several really interesting fraud cases came to light in 2016.   Some of the top headlines included a designer handbag scam , BEC (Business Email Compromises) , EAC (Email Account Compromises) , romance schemes , card data breaches and hacking . As you can tell from these articles, any industry or aspect of life can be affected by trickery and deceit…fashion & beauty, romantic relationships, meals, daily business and even a country’s presidential election.

By:  Dorothy Riggs, CFE It’s important that merchant employees and cardholders possess basic knowledge about card skimmers in order to mitigate financial loss to card issuers and cardholders and to thwart reputational loss to merchants. What is a card skimmer? A skimmer is an electronic device that captures card data.   Card data thieves install the small devices onto or into card terminals at various merchants.   Gas pump terminals and ATMs are among their preferred targets.   Unscrupulous employees at restaurants and the like have also been known to use skimmers to steal card data.

By:   Dorothy Riggs, CFE The initial EMV chip card compliance date for gas pumps was set for October 1, 2017.   However, on December 1, 2016 Visa and MasterCard decided to extend the compliance date to October 1, 2020 , due to difficulties associated with retrofitting fuel pumps to accept EMV chip cards.   Given the prolonged transition date, financial institutions, merchants and card users should brace themselves for elevated card breach attacks launched at fuel pumps along with any other non-EMV-compliant merchants.

5 Tips: Avoid Being Victimized by Identity Thieves and Pickpockets By:  Dorothy Riggs, CFE Fraudsters are extremely savvy and will use every opportunity to cash-in at your expense.  When most people think of protecting themselves from identity theft they tend to focus on shredding documents that include personal or account data, monitoring incoming/outgoing mail, and placing important documents in secure locations inside offices or homes.  Don’t get me wrong, those are all great fraud deterrents.  However, thieves not only target prospective victim’s homes, they target them at gas stations, grocery stores, gyms, parks, schools, day care centers, sports arenas and restaurants. Be mindful that crooks are always on the prowl.  They lurk in wait at locations where people leave their handbags and wallets loosely attended for brief moments; for instance many women leave their handbags in the car for the two to three minutes it takes to walk junior inside the...

Trust Issues By: Dorothy Riggs, CFE The basic definition of trust is placing confidence in your belief that a person or thing is authentic, truthful, able and stable.  Each individual or entity is the sole owner of his or her trust. Thus, the decision regarding whether or not to extend trust is left totally to the issuer’s discretion.  However, that decision can be influenced by several factors such as:  intuition, resumes, recommendations, commendations, references, experience, credentials, reports, analytics and etc.

By:   Dorothy Riggs, CFE Playtime isn’t what it Used to be: New Era = New Toys New pastimes have emerged. Seemingly vanished into thin air is the era when going outside to play hop-scotch, double dutch or Red Rover is the highlight of a youngster’s day.   Those wholesome pastimes are for the most part obsolete.   They’ve been replaced by Facebook, Pokemon Go, Angry Birds and the like.   A few months ago I had the pleasure of speaking to students in a summer enrichment program about fraud.   It didn’t surprise me that the older pupils, which were in grades six through nine, had their own personal smartphones along with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snap Chat accounts.   However, it was an eye-opener for me when the younger children, who were in grades two through five, stated that they too have their own personal smartphones and social media accounts.   Regarding the use of modern digital technology, today’s young people are especiall...