{"id":4729,"date":"2023-05-01T16:07:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-01T23:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/?p=4729"},"modified":"2025-10-27T12:09:39","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T19:09:39","slug":"protecting-your-business-identity-theft-and-reputational-fraud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/blog\/protecting-your-business-identity-theft-and-reputational-fraud\/","title":{"rendered":"Protecting Your Business: Identity theft and reputational fraud"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"co-flex_row co-flex_row__blue co-flex_row__long-form-text co-flex_row__next_row__blog-contributors\" >\n\t<div class=\"co-flex_row--row co-row\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"co-long_form\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-long_form--block co-long_form--block__nomedia prow items-start \">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-long_form--text pcol-md:12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-long_form--content\"><h2>Protecting Your Business: Identity theft and reputational fraud<\/h2>\n<p>Fraud doesn\u2019t always mean a direct financial loss. It could be identify theft or reputational damage from online activity you can\u2019t control which damages your credibility.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Identify theft<\/h3>\n<p>Identity theft happens when someone uses information about you without your permission. They could use your name and address, credit card or bank account numbers to order products and services online, set up business trading accounts with businesses or even pretend to be you if they are arrested!<\/p>\n<p>Identity thieves could even obtain passports, receive government benefits and apply for loans by accessing your personal data such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Credit card information and bank account numbers.<\/li>\n<li>Name, date of birth and signature.<\/li>\n<li>Your personal address.<\/li>\n<li>Mother\u2019s maiden name (often used to verify your identity).<\/li>\n<li>Online usernames and passwords, driver\u2019s license number.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Often much of this information is online (see how much data is available by looking at your social media accounts or conduct an internet search on your name), or it could be as easy as someone rifling through your rubbish bins at night to collect discarded information.<\/p>\n<p>Never provide your personal information over the phone, via text message, email or the internet.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Avoiding identify theft<\/h3>\n<p>There are a number of things you can do to reduce the chance this happens to you.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Don\u2019t use public computers or Wi-Fi hotspots to access or provide personal information or login to online banking. Hotspot from your phone instead.<\/li>\n<li>Create strong and unique passwords for online accounts and at home.<\/li>\n<li>Use 2 Factor Authentication.<\/li>\n<li>Always accept any updates to your computer system as often it includes anti-virus improvements.<\/li>\n<li>Any URL with \u201chttps\u201d and a closed padlock symbol is more secure when buying online.<\/li>\n<li>Try to limit the personal information on social media.<\/li>\n<li>Be wary of anyone making contact with you that misspells common words, grammar is used incorrectly, they ask for a copy of your passport or driver\u2019s license, claim that you have a virus on your computer, you owe taxes, you\u2019ve won a prize, there is an unbelievable free offer (your initial thought was right, it isn\u2019t to be believed).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Reduce the potential for reputational risk<\/h3>\n<p>Reputational risk is a threat to the brand of your business. Usually due to an event that causes negative public perception or bad publicity.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Examples of reputational risk<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Your business receives low ratings or negative comments from customers inside their social media channels. Their feedback may be untrue or mis-communicated.<\/li>\n<li>A business decides to launch a new product to market. In order to launch the product quickly, the usual quality testing processes aren&#8217;t completed. The product gains a reputation for breaking easily, so sales and the business&#8217;s reputation drops. The product is relaunched having gone through a much more stringent quality testing process and is much higher quality, however sales don&#8217;t improve as the brand is now viewed as cheap and unreliable.<\/li>\n<li>Reputational risk can also occur due to events outside of your control, for example, if a hacker was to access all of your customer&#8217;s private information and publish it online. Or if you hire a staff member who handles a customer complaint badly and that customer records their response and takes it to the media.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are ways to mitigate these types of risks to your brand.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"bold\"><strong>1. Protect yourself against data breaches.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Make sure you back up your data, secure your devices and network and encrypt important information.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"bold\"><strong>2. Be vigilant about customer service mishaps.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Make sure you have customer service training for all of your employees to ensure they understand the importance of professionally (and successfully) dealing with complaints.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"bold\"><strong>3. Ensure your hiring process contains thorough background checks.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Background checks and other pre-employment checks are a smart step to include in your hiring process.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"bold\"><strong>4. Adopt core values into your business that your employee can get behind.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Pick four or five core values that you want your businesses to be governed by. Common values include diversity, accountability, innovation, passion, integrity and respect.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"bold\"><strong>5. Have a &#8216;crisis&#8217; communication plan.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>If something does go wrong, you need to be prepared to respond quickly. Having a crisis communication plan specifically for your business is essential. It could be as simple as having a list of all potential risks with your planned response to address them listed.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"co-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/business-loans\/#businesscontactform\">BUSINESS LENDING \u00bb<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0<a class=\"co-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/business-services\/#businessservicescontact\">BUSINESS BANKING SERVICES \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"co-flex_row co-flex_row__last co-flex_row__blog-contributors\" >\n\t<div class=\"co-flex_row--row co-row\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"co-blog_contributors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-blog_contributor\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-blog_contributor--img_wrap\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/files\/HomanCharlene_scu-86_300x300.jpg\" class=\"co-blog_contributor--img\" alt=\"Charlene Homan Sound Credit Union Risk Management &amp; Compliance\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/files\/HomanCharlene_scu-86_300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/files\/HomanCharlene_scu-86_300x300-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/files\/HomanCharlene_scu-86_300x300-75x75.jpg 75w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/div>\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-blog_contributor--content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"co-blog_contributor--name\">Charlene Homan<\/h3><div class=\"co-blog_contributor--title\">VP Risk Management &#038; Compliance<\/div><div class=\"co-blog_contributor--bio text-component\"><p>Charlene Homan serves as the Vice President of Risk Management and Compliance at Sound Credit Union, where she leads compliance initiatives and oversees risk management strategies, including BSA compliance, fraud prevention, quality assurance, and enterprise risk management. With over 15 years in the credit union industry, Charlene has advanced from an entry-level position to her current leadership role, demonstrating comprehensive understanding of credit union landscape that supports Sound Credit Union&#8217;s values while ensuring a strong commitment to regulatory compliance and risk management.<\/p>\n<p>As Sound&#8217;s appointed Compliance Officer, Charlene ensures adherence to all relevant laws and regulations while providing essential oversight on compliance issues, with the overarching goal of effectively serving members. She actively engages in professional development by attending key industry conferences and training programs. She is passionate about supporting her teams to create awareness to the membership and surrounding communities, with the intent to empower individuals to protect themselves from common scams and other fraud activities.<\/p>\n<\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-blog_contributor--social\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Connect<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/charlene-homan-1a856662\/\" class=\"co-social_share--link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-label=\"LinkedIn\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"icon-svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" role=\"img\" aria-label=\"Icon LinkedIn\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-content\/themes\/soundcu-theme\/images\/sprite-icons.svg#linkedin\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Identity theft happens when someone uses information about you without your permission. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/blog\/protecting-your-business-identity-theft-and-reputational-fraud\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":11072,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4729","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-commercial"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4729","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4729"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4729\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17384,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4729\/revisions\/17384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4729"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4729"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.soundcu.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4729"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}