Sheriff's Office
Crime Prevention
Focus on...Identity Theft

BUSINESS CHECK AND CREDIT CARD ACCEPTANCE PROCEDURES TO MINIMIZE FORGERY AND FRAUD

• Post your check and credit card acceptance procedures in plain view for all customers to see.

• Post closed circuit television notification signage, “all financial transactions are video / digitally recorded.

• Require acceptable identification; consider accepting state identification or military identification cards with photographs.

• On the face of the original check record identification type: state / military, alpha and numeric digits on the identification, date of acceptance and initials of teller / cashier.

• Consider purchasing check readers and subscribing with an authorization service.

• If you use an authorization service, consider keeping records on these checks approved in a clear manner (authorization codes on front of the check at acceptance).

• Consider not accepting out of state checks (more then two states away) or home-generated checks.

• Train your employees on identification procedures: check procedures and how to decline checks or credit cards when they are not acceptable to the business rules you established (your posted check / credit card acceptance policy).  You need to provide this training on an on going basis (at least each quarter review check losses with your employees).

• Consider employee rewards or positive feedback for preventing frauds.

CLOSED CIRCUIT OR DIGITAL CAMERA GUIDELINES

Place cameras to insure facial images are recorded.

• Size of the images must be clear to promote positive identify of suspects.

• Obstructed views and customer disguises, including baseball hats, need to be taken into account.

• Do not record from the ceiling; rather place the camera at eye level.

• Cameras may be out of sight, but consider signage notifying your customers.

• Place cameras over customer entry points and the parking lot to record vehicles and license plates if possible.

• Images, which are clear, but to far away have limited value.

• Consider maintaining 90 days of image / video storage.

• Quality camera system and maintenance (lens cleaning, video tape replaced after 30 uses, refocusing and system testing) must be done monthly. 

• Secure camera placements and the recording area need to be determined.

• Consider pulling and cueing up tapes for law enforcement when you have a fraud loss.

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