Numerous companies have been victims of business identity theft. Basically, a malicious individual uses the company’s identity to get credit. It’s actually very similar to personal identity theft. The thief spends too much money without express permission or knowledge of the company. As a result, the company might not be able to acquire credit later on.

To prevent business identity theft, you should consider the following preventive measures.

1- Protecting the Documents

To pull off such a scam, most thieves have access to the company’s documents. To prevent business identity theft, you should protect you’re the essential documents in the following ways.

First, you should choose a good location to store the important business document. Make sure that the location is secure and safe from unauthorized personnel. Make sure the location is impenetrable in case there is any attempt to do so.

Secondly, you should shred all important documents that are no longer in use. If you’re using a shredder, make sure that the disposed documents can be pieced back together. If possible, look for a shredder that cuts both horizontally and vertically to prevent this.

2- Employee Credit Cards

When issuing employees with credit cards, make sure they are the prepaid type. That way, you can always deactivate them when it’s necessary to do so and set usage limits. Even better, you can always limit the type of merchants where the card is usable. Here is a good policy for business credit cards for employees.

3- Online Transactions

If you do any online transactions, make sure they are very secure. Check the security certificate to make sure that it’s valid and up-to date. On the other hand, make sure the site itself isn’t malicious by checking the padlock sign on the site’s URL – one of the best ways how to prevent identity theft.

Secure websites start with HTTPS rather than HTTP. The S stands for secure. If you click on the padlock icon, you should be able to view the security information for validation purposes.

4- Employee Security Training and Education

It’s wrong to assume that all your employees have complete knowledge of all the scams currently in the market. Keep in mind that identity thieves are coming up with new scams every new day. It’s practically hard to keep up.

However, if your employees are kept up-to date on the latest scams, it’s easy to prevent identity theft. Advise them to cross-check any transactions or communication though any media before responding to avoid any identity theft scams.

5- Individual Passwords

It’s actually easier for employees to use the same passwords across all the programs in the company. However, if you want to keep your company completely secure, you should provide individual passwords to all the employees. If all the passwords are similar, it’s easy for malicious third parties to gain access to critical information.

6- Monitoring Credit Reports

Just like you would monitor your personal credit information, you should also do the same for your company. If there is any suspicious activity, you should take the necessary measures immediately. Use a trustworthy credit monitoring agency to get the best results.

7- Computer Protection

At this age of technology advancements, most business identity thieves can gain access to the company through the business computers. That’s why it’s prudent to install updated protection on all the computers. Use the best antivirus programs as well as anti-spyware to keep the computers protected.

With these tips, your business should be completely protected from any identity scams.