6 Preventive Measures to Protect Your Company Against Financial Crime

With any company or business, there are many risks involved in managing it daily.

You have to deal with suppliers and product quality or service quality. You also have to negotiate with the management of the people who work in the company. Aside from that, you also have to deal with clients ‒ both great and not-so-great.

Additionally, you have to deal with the security and protection of your company's finances and integrity. With that said, you have to protect your company against financial crimes and set up measures to do so.

There are many ways you can protect yourself from these untoward incidents. Below, you'll find six preventive measures to help defend your company against financial crime.

Do due diligence

A general sense of consciousness is a fundamental quality to help you deal with customers. That is especially true when dealing with large transactions or other fiscal dealings. Thus, you should do right by your business and do your due diligence.

You can verify the validity of your customer's identity, or you can hire a service to do it for you, like the service of customer due diligence by First AML. If you have the time, you can do it by yourself, but if you don't, consider hiring a service to do it for you.

Small businesses are especially vulnerable to these kinds of attacks. Researching the background of your customers can help prevent you from falling victim to a scam.

Create a culture of awareness.

Education is the key to preventing financial crime from occurring in your company. One way to help stop financial crimes is by educating every company member about any techniques financial criminals can use.

You can hold workshops or training every so often so that you and your staff are constantly updated on any new scams. You have to teach them certain behaviors that can be suspicious so that they can keep a closer eye on them.

Creating a culture of awareness around financial crime is the best way to prevent financial setbacks caused by criminal undertakings.

Investigate anyone

Although you wouldn't want to be too suspicious and rude against other people, it doesn't mean that you should leave your company wide open for the taking. Again, cautiousness isn't bad, especially when it helps protect you.

No matter how trustworthy a person may seem or how charming they appear, it is best to always be on guard. After all, the people you are dealing with are experts in financial crime, so you should treat them as such.

Ask subtle but probing questions to help you determine whether or not a customer is trustworthy. You can never be too careful.

Beware of cybersecurity risks.

The digital age has opened people up to various possibilities, including creating online businesses. At the same time, however, it has also opened them up to a wide range of risks in the digital realm.

Ensure that you protect your business from cybersecurity risks, especially when dealing with large transactions that aren't usual for your business. Make sure that you regularly check for accounts that have multiple identities.

Much like how you protect yourself from real-life customers, you should also try your best to research online customers. You should also create backups of your data so that you won't have information leaks that can lead to financial losses.

Maintain thorough financial records.

Sometimes, the financial insecurity of your company can be because of inside work by people who work for you and with you. It is much more dangerous because people within the company have sensitive information on your business that can be used as leverage for underhanded dealings.

To protect your company against an inside job, keep a history of your business transactions as much as possible. This way, you know how your company's cash flows in and out.

It makes it much easier to see if any unusual activities are going on. Ensure that financial records are updated continuously and as often as possible so that you know what is happening in your company at all times.

Build robust controls

Another way to protect your company from financial crimes is by setting up the right level of security for any crucial business information, papers, etc. You can set up any authorization processes, like dual authorization, to make accessing information easier with the correct answers.

Physical security measures are best for any financial records or accounts you want to protect. Again, you must record or backup at least any critical files.

Wrap up

It is much easier to prevent financial crime in your company than to stop or resolve ongoing financial compromises. With the preventive measures mentioned above, you should be sufficiently protected from frequent financial attacks on your business.