B.C. businesses in denial
Okanagan Edge Staff - Feb 22, 2017 - BC Biz

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A survey released today shows “giant denial” among B.C. businesses when it comes to fraud detection and prevention.

According to a new Ipsos survey conducted for the consulting firm MNP LLP, incidents of fraud are rising every year, yet an “overwhelming majority” of business owners think they can prevent it.

The survey reveals that nearly half of B.C. business people either suspect or know for certain their business had experienced fraud or scams in the last year (48 per cent from external sources, 45 per cent from internal sources).

However, eight out of ten of respondents also said they are confident in their ability to prevent fraud. Another 90 per cent feel at least somewhat equipped to deal with it.

Survey respondents were far more likely to identify fraud as a serious issue in the wider industry than in their own place of business.

“This kind of ‘it won’t happen to me’ optimism puts the advantage in the hands of criminals and makes businesses tremendously vulnerable,” says Jacklyn Davies, an MNP LLP employee who is part of a team of specialists in workplace fraud mitigation

“The reality is that no organization is immune from either internal or external fraud.”

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre agrees. Last year the federal agency saw a 170 per cent increase in the number of victims and a 120 per cent increase in the number of complaints of wire fraud in B.C.

“Fraudsters will go to great lengths to assume the identity of company executives or trusted vendors; spoofing company email messages, researching employees who are responsible for money management and using language specific to the company being targeted,” says Lynn Danis, Criminal Intelligence Analyst with the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.

“Victims range from large corporations to small businesses which is why it is critical all organizations create a proactive security-vigilant culture. Ultimately, fraud prevention falls on the business.”

Davies adds there is a “giant denial” among B.C. businesses when it comes to preventing fraud. Two thirds of survey respondents describe their business’ attitude to fraud and scams as proactive.

“Often times we see businesses who come to us after they have been compromised but they don’t know how or why it has happened,” says Davies. “They may have had security awareness and fraud training processes in place but sophisticated scammers or even internal employees can find points of vulnerability. They realize they were not as equipped to deal with it after the dollars go out the door.”

Despite the rising occurrence of fraud, the majority of B.C. businesses say they are about as concerned (57 per cent) or less concerned (13 per cent) about this type of crime than they were two years ago.


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