Published on January 19th, 2019 | by Valerie Malecha

4 Secrets On How To Avoid Business Scams

It’s increasingly becoming easier for scammers to target businesses. Unlike individuals, businesses tend to deal with a wider pool of people or other businesses. This may include vendors, suppliers, and employees.

With this in mind, fraudsters have a wide array of avenues to prey on innocent business owners. They can pose as suppliers, customers or even government entities like the IRS.

Falling into the hands of scammers can be extremely harmful to your business. Besides the monetary loss, the reputation and integrity of your business can be tarnished by any successful scam.

As a proprietor, it is imperative that you learn how to protect your entity from scammers.

So, what is the secret on how to avoid Business Scams?

Run background checks while hiring

Some scammers are likely to use falsified documents to gain access to your company. During your hiring process, ensure that proper and thorough background checks are undertaken before you proceed to hire someone.

With technology, it is easy to track and verify the information given to you by a potential employee. Some of the things to look for include the previous company the prospective employee worked for. You can make use of the internet to see if the mentioned organization exists. If you are doubtful about it, it’s advisable to make a call to the company to confirm that the person of interest worked there.

You can select agencies to conduct background checks, including the criminal records of the potential employee. By doing this, you will have taken a step closer to safety in regards to scamming possibilities that are spearheaded by crooks hired as employees.

Do not respond to weird emails

Scammers are now using email to scam businesses through malware and other tactics to obtain sensitive information. Sometimes, you may receive phoney emails from either a business or individual you have never transacted with.

In the event of such cases, be proactive by conducting some research about the company where the email has originated from. Check if it is in existence, and where it’s located. If the information is genuine, you can proceed to respond or open links in your email safely.

If an email is riddled with broken English, be wary of opening it as it may contain viruses. Some viruses are used by scammers to mine passwords and other sensitive information from computerized devices that can be used to scam you later.

Be wary of strange calls

Phone calls are easy to make, all that a scammer needs to do is getting your business contacts, pose as a government agency or supplier and make the call. The trickster may call with the goal of asking for sensitive information that can be used to defraud your company through other means.

Scammers may also use information obtained falsely to pose as technicians or suppliers and take the advantage to steal from you. In such cases, the number software could help you out. Spokeo is meticulous when it comes to searching for information regarding the phone owner. It provides you with a comprehensive reverse look report that might even include the caller’s email and location. This is an effective phone software that will help you maintain safety by keeping scammers at bay.

Refrain from conversing about money, credit or indebtedness without a lawyer present

As a business owner, if you are approached by people you don’t know with issues regarding money, credit or indebtedness involve a lawyer. Most scammers will be put off by the possibility of legal representation on any matter. Their goal is to defraud you and take your money without coming into contact with the law.

So, if you are having a hard time figuring out the legitimacy of people claiming to be representative of a certain agency, for whichever reason whatsoever, call your attorney for safety reasons.

Conclusion

If you have employees in your business, train them on how to identify scammers. You can also come up with data policies that safeguard your communication networks and systems. Note that the more employees you have, the more channels scammers have to scam you. One of your staff members may know how to recognize a suspicious email, but another one could be clueless, making your business vulnerable to scammers. With your workforce well acquainted with the knowledge to neutralize scammers, your business will be quite safe.

Tags: business scams, email, irs, scam, scammer, Spokeo, virus