We’ve all watched the recent unraveling of Target Corporation’s data breach that left thousands of customers vulnerable to identity theft and financial institutes scurrying to take extra measures to protect their cardholders against potential loss. But, what happens when your company is targeted by the thieves responsible for stealing someone else’s identity?

This scenario is all too familiar for more than half of U.S. organizations. According to a 2013 Payments Fraud and Control Survey reported by the Association of Financial Professionals, 61% of organizations experienced attempted or actual payments fraud in 2012, and 29% of those affected reported that corporate/commercial purchasing cards were targeted.

Situation

Cornerstone IT recently prevented a payment fraud totaling more than $16,000 from being authorized on behalf of an unnamed company. Cornerstone IT received a shadowy phone call from an out-of-state individual who they had not previously done business with. The individual wanted to make a large purchase upfront, and had a difficult time answering qualifying questions routinely asked by Cornerstone IT representatives when speaking with first-time callers.

Suspicious, Cornerstone IT continued with processing the large purchase but took extra steps to verify the account holder’s identity, such as asking how the card holder was related to the buyer, and for the name of the financial institute through which the card was issued. When the names and addresses didn’t add up, Cornerstone IT had enough information to be able to contact the cardholder and notify them personally that a fraudulent claim had been made. With proper fraud detection training, Cornerstone IT personnel were able to identify the caller’s fraudulent behavior and stall the offender long enough for the credit card holder to cancel the card and file a report. No damage was actually done to the card owner.

Solution

Effectively fighting fraud relies on setting up necessary network security measures to prevent outside data breaches, but also implementing internal employee procedures for qualifying and verifying legitimate behaviors.

Contact Cornerstone IT to learn how you can protect your data with managed security services.