Understanding the Legal Landscape of Check Fraud: Key Aspects and Implications

As a global leader in check fraud detection and prevention, we at OrboGraph understand the complexities and changing landscape of check fraud in the financial industry. Even with the rise of digital payment methods, check fraud remains a considerable risk for banks and credit unions. Notably, fraudulent actors are employing increasingly sophisticated tactics to alter checks and deceive financial institutions. Keeping up with these trends is imperative for bank executives looking to safeguard their institutions, maintain customer trust, and avoid potential fines.

With this in mind, our focus is to help financial institutions evaluate and bolster their current processes, resources, strategies, and technologies in the fight against check fraud. Given the significant impact that check fraud can have on a bank’s reputation and bottom line, it’s crucial to remain vigilant and proactive in detecting and preventing fraudulent activities.

In the following post, we will delve deeper into understanding the legal landscape of check fraud, including the various methods employed by fraudsters, the consequences of undetected fraud for banks, and the best practices in strengthening existing fraud detection and prevention efforts.

Basics of Check Fraud

Common Check Fraud Tactics

Check fraud is an increasing concern for financial institutions and businesses. Fraudsters employ a variety of tactics to deceive their targets.These include: 

Counterfeit Checks: Counterfeit checks are created by fraudsters and designed to look like genuine checks from a legitimate account holder.

Alterations: Criminals may alter checks by changing information on a check, such as payee names and amounts, or account numbers, in order to divert funds for their own benefit. 

Forgery: Forgery involves the unauthorized signing or endorsement of another person’s check. Typically, a fraudster will obtain a stolen blank check or checkbook, add their information, and forge the signature on the check..

Check Kiting: Check kiting is a scheme where an individual opens accounts at multiple banks and uses the float period to artificially inflate account balances. 

Stolen Checks/Mail Theft: Over the past few years, we have seen a dramatic increase in mail theft/mail carrier robberies. The goal is to obtain stolen checks – either directly from a mail carrier/mailbox or obtain an arrow key to open blue USPS mailboxes – to obtain stolen checks. 

Identity Theft: Identity theft occurs when criminals use another person’s personal information to commit fraud, such as accessing or opening bank accounts. A majority of this information is readily available on a check. With the increase in stolen checks, fraudsters are “reverse engineering” to steal identities. 

Fraudsters and their Motives

The motive behind check fraud is usually financial gain, but the perpetrators may also seek to cause harm or disruption to businesses and individuals. Criminals involved in check fraud come from diverse backgrounds and often have different levels of expertise.

Experienced fraudsters are posting their services on the dark web and encrypted messaging platforms to teach newbie fraudsters on everything from how to wash checks to offering “mule” services. Some are even boldly posting on YouTube. 

If that wasn’t bad enough, as we recently noted in a blog post from OrboGraph, there is a rise in the “casual fraudster.” As explained by Bill Roese, Chief Risk Officer of Ingo Money: 

“Imagine that you’re using remote deposit capture offered by your bank. You take a picture of the front and back of your check, but now you have the check. In prior banking experience, you would have turned that check into the teller. It’s almost a crime of convenience. Now you’ve got this check, you’re having trouble making your rent, so you deposit it again [elsewhere], or take it down to a check casher” and cash it a second time.

Impact on Businesses and Individuals

The effects of check fraud can be devastating for businesses and individuals alike. Banks may face substantial fines, loss of customer trust, and damage to their reputation. Furthermore, the time and resources required to investigate and resolve check fraud cases can be significant, putting additional strain on the affected parties.

To minimize the risk of check fraud, it’s essential for banks to evaluate and continually improve their current processes, strategies, and technologies. Implementing advanced fraud detection and prevention measures can help safeguard businesses, individuals, and financial institutions from the adverse effects of check fraud.

By staying vigilant and well-informed on the evolving landscape of check fraud, we at OrboGraph can play a crucial role in defending our clients from potential threats and maintain our leadership position in the industry.

Detecting Check Fraud

As a global leader in the field of check fraud detection and prevention, we understand the importance of implementing effective technologies to mitigate check fraud risks. To minimize the likelihood of check fraud and its financial consequences, businesses and financial institutions should consider the following preventive measures:

Image Forensic AI

Image forensic AI takes a forensic documentation approach – a subcategory of the forensic field, dealing with the authenticity of the documents – to analyze the images of deposited checks. The technology leverages a multitude of analyzers, including:

• Check Stock Validation (CSV-AI) to identify any discrepancies in the check stock from previously cleared items.
• Automated Signature Verification (ASV-AI) to verify the authenticity of the signature(s) on the check.
• Writer Verification (WV-AI) to analyze the handwriting style of the check for consistency on the deposited item and consistency from previous cleared items.
• Alteration Detection (AD-AI) to analyze the check style along with amount discrepancy.  

Behavioral/Transactional Analysis

Behavioral/Transactional Analysis leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to identify anomalous behavior and transactions within an account. By monitoring the account activity, the technology is able to sort through hundreds, if not thousands, of transactions to learn the account holder’s financial spending to not only identify anomalous behavior/transactions, but also identify if accounts are being used for nefarious purposes. 

Payee Positive Pay

Payee positive pay for business checking accounts extracts the payee name, amounts, and account number to be compared to the issue file or negative/positive payee lists. This enables banks to identify altered check’s payee or amount fields, or if a counterfeit check has been created and deposited before the payment is posted. 

Consortium Data

Consortium data (an agreement, combination, or group [as of companies] formed to undertake an enterprise beyond the resources of any one member) enables banks to share transactional information with other consortium members. This means financial institutions can run different verification checks such as counterfeit, non-sufficient funds (NSF), Closed Accounts, Duplicate, and other fraudulent items. 

Dark Web Monitoring

Dark web monitoring searches the dark web, along with other messaging platforms, to identify whether  an account holder’s information or checks are available for sale. This enables the financial institution to close the account and notify their customers of the threat of identity theft.  

Role of Banks and Financial Institutions

As a financial institution, it’s essential to evaluate your current processes, resources, and strategies in order to combat check fraud effectively. Financial institutions, including banks and credit unions, play a critical role in preventing check fraud due to their position in the payment processing cycle.

We are committed to remaining at the forefront of check fraud detection and prevention within the financial industry. By continuously investing in innovative check fraud prevention technologies, such as OrboGraph’s advanced check fraud detection solutions, we can stay a step ahead of fraudsters and protect our customers’ financial assets.

Moreover,senior executives responsible for handling fraud within our bank must take a proactive approach to safeguarding their institution from the reputational damage and financial loss associated with check fraud. Through comprehensive risk assessments, employee training, and the implementation of top-tier fraud prevention technologies, long-term success and security can be assured. 

Legal Implications and Defenses

Prosecuting Check Fraud

Banks face significant repercussions if they fail to detect or prevent check fraud. Legal consequences vary depending on the severity of the crime and the total value involved. It’s essential for banks to be aware of the potential losses, litigation, and the process to prosecute fraudulent activities. Check fraud can lead to substantial fines for both banks and their customers, besides damaging their reputations.

Legal Defenses

From a bank’s perspective, proactively evaluating current processes, resources, strategies, and technologies is crucial in preventing and defending against check fraud cases. Legal defenses may revolve around the ability to prove that a check has been altered, establishing traceable procedures that led to the discovery of bad checks, and demonstrating the bank’s adherence to relevant legal and regulatory requirements.

Banks should invest in robust check fraud prevention solutions to minimize their exposure to legal ramifications. Implementing a comprehensive solution that integrates with existing systems can serve as a crucial defense in protecting a bank’s reputation and avoiding costly legal battles.

Role of Regulatory Bodies

Regulatory bodies such as FinCEN and the Federal Reserve play a critical part in managing the legal landscape of check fraud. These organizations are responsible for establishing and enforcing guidelines that help banks and financial institutions prevent, detect, and combat check fraud. Compliance with regulatory bodies’ requirements is of utmost importance for banks, as non-compliance can result in hefty fines and reputational damage.

Banks must remain up-to-date with current regulations, guidelines, and changing check fraud scenarios. Keeping a close eye on regulatory changes and maintaining proper documentation of the bank’s processes and policies can greatly improve a bank’s ability to defend itself against potential legal disputes.

Banks can better navigate the legal landscape of check fraud by understanding prosecution, legal defenses, and regulatory bodies’ roles. Investing in advanced fraud prevention solutions, staying compliant with regulations, and constantly monitoring and adapting to the changing financial environment will be crucial in maintaining the bank’s reputation and avoiding legal complications.