Beware of Corporate Minutes Solicitation

In a world full of scams and frauds there is currently a new one that is targeting unsuspecting Ohio business owners.

 

The mail solicitation which has been received by some of our clients is being initiated by a Company “Ohio Corporate Compliance” of Columbus, OH.  The official looking letterhead and form design has led some to believe that completing the form is required by law.  The solicitation involves advising businesses that they must maintain corporate minutes (which is true).  

Corruption Heads Fraud Examiners’ Most Common Financial Crime

At last fall’s OSCPA Accounting Show, I addressed a breakout group of several hundred participants on the results of the 2008 American Institute of Certified Fraud Examiners Report to the Nation.

 

One of the more surprising highlights of my talk was the fact that according to the Report, the most common fraud scheme was corruption.  Corruption is more commonly associated with conflicts of interest, bribery, kickbacks, bid rigging, illegal gratuities, and even extortion.

Protect Your Employees, Protect Your Clients, Protect Your Business

In conjunction with providing forensic recommendations to minimize theft of corporate assets, we have made security recommendations to clients in an effort to assist them minimize the risk of loss associated with the common thief.  See, a lot of people either don’t think with a criminal mind – or see such glaring weaknesses – or else they think it simply just can’t happen to them (much like being the victim of a white collar crime).

 

What happens if the thief poses as a maintenance person, courier, or just needs to politely use the restroom.  How does your staff know this person really “doesn’t belong” on site?  Does your staff know how to respond? What security protocols exist? Is security response a part of your firm’s culture and new employee orientation?  Think that you are not at risk in this day and age of unemployment and general economic decline?  Guess again!  The bigger the office, the more likely that you are vulnerable to being a victim as in a smaller office you very well know your co-workers and when a maintenance guy is there to address a legitimate issue. What’s yours could very well be someone else’s if you don’t watch out.  Aren’t your valuables worth properly safeguarding?

 

Thefts within offices are at an all time high.  Valuables including cell phones, I pods, purses, wallets, and laptops are easy items to walk away with.  What about a client’s personal information, client files, or computer access?  Aren’t they all at risk?

 

In this day and age of identity theft and almost daily public notification of security breaches compromising our personal information, don’t we owe it to our employees and clients to improve security?  To protect them?  To protect your clients?

 

We are overly trusting people – to a fault.  We feel safe in our work environment.  For the most part we know our co-workers.  Or do you?  As a result of feeling safe, employees have a tendency to let their trusting guards down temporarily forgetting that everyone that may be in your work environment may not be as honest as you.  And that’s when a thief strikes – when an opportunity exists and valuables are readily visible.