Stop, check and check again

It seems every day we are hearing about the latest loss of data, how companies and individuals have been “tricked” into handing over large sums of money and how our personal information is being used without our knowledge.

I am sure that many of these things have always happened, confidence tricksters and “con artists” have been with us for a long time, so why is it happening more frequently now?

Technology has indeed made it easier to communicate and move information around, but unfortunately, this makes it easier for the fraudsters too.

Over the last few months, I have seen a growing number of organisations caught out by such fraudsters. These tend to be smaller businesses where staff know the CEO or Owner and are used to taking informal instruction from them and do not question too much when this happens.

So, what can we do to combat this? One piece of advice I can give is to take an “old fashioned” approach.

This may seem at odds with today’s fast-paced world of technological marvel, but just think, in the past did shops give you something essentially on the promise that you would pay? It would have been interesting to go into a shop and tell the staff that their Manager before going on holiday, said that it would be okay for you to pick up the latest TV for free whilst they were away. And just to prove it, you have an unsigned letter with their name on it. I suspect you would have been politely asked to leave!

Adopting an “old fashioned” approach is one way to combat this. Don’t give anything to anyone until you have spoken to the person who has authorized it, either face to face or on the phone (and of course, you ring them, not vice versa). Always be suspicious if the authorizing person is conveniently on holiday or not in the office.

Be “old fashioned”, take your time, check and do not be hurried into making a decision. If the person doing the asking in the email is really your CEO, they should appreciate your thoroughness.

And if you are the CEO and have just received a quick phone call from your accounts person while you lie on the beach in the Bahamas, don’t be upset with them for double-checking. That few minutes of your time could probably be the best investment you have ever made. After all, where can you save £100,000 by taking a 2-minute call today?