Are you at Risk for Corporate Identity Theft? How to Protect Your Business

​​When people think of identity theft, most imagine thieves stealing a person's information for monetary gain. But did you know that identity theft can also affect businesses?

When hackers target businesses, they attack internal hard drives and databases. Once they've stolen a company's information, they hold it hostage for ransom payments. Corporate identity theft can be financially devastating: US businesses lost about $56 billion to identity theft in 2021.

Fortunately, there are ways to protect your company and its information.

In this post, we'll discuss what corporate identity theft is, how it can affect your business, and how to prevent it.

What is Corporate Identity Theft?

During corporate identity theft, criminals pose as employees or vendors to access company systems and data.

Once they've hacked the system, they wreak havoc by deleting files, encrypting data, or holding information hostage. They often request large ransom payments and refuse to release information until a merchant sends funds.

Here are a few of the most common methods criminals use to steal company information:

• Phishing emails. In 2021, 83% of organizations experienced phishing attacks. During a phishing attack, hackers send a fake email that appears to be legitimate. The email usually contains malicious attachments or links that install malware when an employee clicks them.
  
• Malware. Criminals use malware to access company systems and data. Most criminals use phishing emails, infected websites, or USB drives to install malware. Malware can disrupt operations by locking employees out of their computers. Usually, the hackers will only provide an access key after a company pays the ransom. Hackers also use malware to monitor emails and sensitive data.
  
• Social engineering. Criminals use social engineering techniques to trick employees into giving them access to company systems and data. Social engineering usually takes place over the phone, through email, or in person.

If all of this sounds frightening, don't worry - you can protect your business.

Seamless Chex offers encryptions, multi-factor authentications (MFAs), and other tools to keep your customers and employees safe. More on that next.

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3 Tips to Prevent Corporate Identity Theft

Use these tips to keep your business safe from identity theft:

• Use Encryption. Encrypt all sensitive data. This makes it difficult for criminals to access information - even if they manage to break into a company's systems.
• Employ Systematic Entry. Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all employees. With MFA, employees must provide two or more pieces of identification (like a password and fingerprint) to access information. Multi-factor authentication makes it difficult for criminals to pose as employees and access company data.
• Focus on Education. Educate employees on the dangers of identity theft. They should know how to spot suspicious emails or websites. There are many different lessons regarding safe cyber practices online, and all of them can help your team members learn how to behave safely online.

Keep Your Business Secure with Seamless Chex

The best way to keep your payments and information safe is to work with a reputable payment processing company like Seamless Chex. We offer services designed to protect transactions and prevent fraud.

By taking the preventative measures mentioned above and partnering with Seamless Chex, you can keep your business safe and avoid identity theft.

Ready to learn more? Contact a Seamless Chex representative today to open your merchant account.

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