Even in the digital era, many businesses still write and print checks to complete a payment. Using a paper check is a simple way to pay vendors and contractors who are not part of your business. Additionally, many people find that having physical checks can be extremely beneficial for paying employees. However, to ensure your payment data and information stay safe, you’ll want to consider a secure check printing and mailing service.
Paper checks will continue to be useful for businesses large and small, even though they might seem old-fashioned for individual use. It is crucial for businesses to continuously ensure the security of important documents. Assuming your business will be immune to the risks of fraud or theft can often have significant consequences. When it comes to taking security measures, it is much better to be safe than sorry.
Fortunately, SmartPayables’ check printing and mailing services include a range of check printing security features that can help keep your business data safe. Increasing data security for your company’s information and your payees’ information can significantly improve how your business operates.
In this article, we will talk about the basics of check printing security and ways to keep your business information safe. We’ll also look at how an outsourced check printing and mailing company like SmartPayables will ensure the safety of your business as well as your payee’s data and account information.
Overview of the Check Printing Industry
For many years, people have been using paper checks to send money. However, they have been doing so without adequate payment security, risking check fraud. In the year 2023, consumers reported losing $10 billion to fraud, a 14% increase from previous years.
Even in instances where check fraud can eventually be reconciled — whether this is through your bank or another third party — your business will want to avoid the costs and hassle associated with it.
You must actively consider a few things to develop a check security plan that is compatible with your business:
- What type of checks do you use on a regular basis? What kind of confidential information do these checks typically contain?
- Who are your payees and where are they located?
- How many physical checks does your business use per year? How many digital checks do you use?
- Which types of check fraud are most likely to happen to your business?
- What security measures do you already have in place and how can they be improved?
Check fraud can happen more often than you think. If your business doesn’t have a plan for handling critical data such as payee addresses and account information, it’s time to upgrade your check printing and mailing security. Outsourcing check printing to a company like SmartPayables can help keep your payment data safe. It can also relieve you of any concerns or worries you may have about the process.
Understanding Check Fraud and Other Risks
The term “check fraud” is rather vague and can be used to describe a rather wide range of criminal activities. Sometimes, check fraud can be as simple as signing someone else’s name. Other times, attempts to commit check fraud will be significantly more sophisticated and involve check washing.
Understanding potential risks are very important for ensuring that your business is as secure as possible:
- Counterfeiting checks means imitating an otherwise legitimate check. The easier a given check will be to imitate, the more likely that someone could pull off a successful counterfeit. Having special types of ink, paper, and unique graphics can help keep you more secure.
- Forging checks describes criminal efforts to sign or endorse a check using an unauthorized name other than their own. This is likely the oldest variety of check fraud there is.
- Altering checks describes making any sort of unauthorized changes to a check. For example, altering the listed value of the check after signing it is a form of alteration. Having special chemicals to prevent the act of check washing will help make successful alterations significantly less likely.
These are likely the most common ways in which check fraud can occur. More recently, many criminals also have begun engaging in a practice known as check kiting. Check kiting is a complex practice that involves the use of multiple different financial institutions. Essentially, by preying on overdraft allowances that occur between banks, the criminal will be able to gain premature access to deposited funds (that would otherwise be inaccessible).
Though each of these practices have a tremendous amount of variations between them, there are two things they all have in common. First, these are essential reasons why business owners should be mindful of who they are exchanging checks with. Second, each of these practices can be effectively prevented by increasing various security features.
Helping Keep Your Physical Checks Secure
With so many different types of check fraud in circulation, it can often be quite difficult for you to know where to begin increasing your security features.
The most obvious way to protect your checks is to increase the amount of paper security features you have present. This can include a variety of physical attributes such as watermarks, security threads, enhanced toners, chemical sensitivities, special fibers, and numerous others. These features will be particularly useful for avoiding counterfeiting and alterations.
Furthermore, the specific design of your checks is also something that should be actively accounted for. Using text, fonts, layouts, and graphics that are specific to your business can help make your checks much more difficult to counterfeit. As an additional benefit (unrelated to security), these design features will also help you further establish your brand. The best checks are able to resist fraud and problems like chemical wash and heating.
Streamlining Digital Security
If your business wants to increase efficiency, establish a greater sense of professionalism, and continue its effort to make its checks more secure, it should strive to create a system that also includes various digital security features. Features like blank check protection, positive pay, and signature security can prevent check fraud in the long run. Hardware such as encrypted data streams, password-protected controls, and paper jam disabling will also be quite helpful.
Choosing the Check Printing Company that is Right for You
If you want to make your check payments safer and more reliable without having to worry about managing security yourself, partner with an outsourced check printing and mailing firm. Many of these organizations will also be able to help your business with other common needs — such as document printing and mailing — and will offer additional services such as ACH direct deposit automation, address cleansing, and check printing API integrations.
When comparing pricing and packages, there are a few things you should be actively looking out for.
- The physical and digital security features that are readily available
- The cost per unit and the amount of volume that their organization can handle
- Other services (statement printing, marketing, etc.) that are also available
- The quality of the customer service — are they willing to answer your questions?
By reviewing each of these variables, you should be able to easily tell if a prospective check printing and mailing company is right for your business.
Conclusion- Why Secure Check Printing is Imperative
Overall, the need to have a variety of check security features is something that ought to be universally apparent. Check fraud is a growing problem and one that is expected to continue increasing over time.
Fortunately, this problem can be actively avoided by making the right choices in advance. Many businesses rely on cashing and receiving checks daily. Fortunately, more security features are now available to help protect these transactions. By upgrading your security, you can be much better prepared for the future.
For more information on check printing security features, contact SmartPayables at (720) 287-0030 or toll-free at 1-844-CO-SMART.
Founded in 2005, SmartPayables offers a full range of accounts payable payment solutions including outsourced check printing and mailing, document and statement printing and mailing, ACH direct deposits + more. Our highly experienced software developers and intelligent printing teams specialize in secure, enterprise-grade payment options that are HIPAA, SOC 1 Type 2, and ISO compliant. Our mission is to help businesses and large organizations implement secure, innovative technology that will reduce overhead and improve business operations and capabilities.
Founded in 2005, Smart Payables offers a full range of accounts payable payment solutions including outsourced check printing and mailing, document and statement printing and mailing, ACH direct deposits + more. Our highly experienced software developers and intelligent printing teams specialize in secure, enterprise-grade payment options that are HIPAA, SOC 1 Type 2, and ISO compliant. Our mission is to help businesses and large organizations implement secure, innovative technology that will reduce overhead and improve business operations and capabilities.