New! QuickBooks Detect & Defend

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QuickBooks Detect & Defend is a standalone product and can be purchased with or without an existing QuickBooks subscription. Intuit has partnered with EZShield to help small businesses prevent and protect personal data against fraud.

Fraud is widespread and can be devastating to a small business.

Unfortunately, it is not hard to impersonate someone. With only a few pieces of information, personal and company fraud can produce devastating results.

While everyone is starting to hear more about data breaches, far too often companies attempt to protect their brand by failing to share the fact that a breach has occurred, especially if they believe that the cyber criminals didn't get away with any customer data. But the problem is, 'they can't be certain that data wasn't lost!'

These companies recognize that breaches can tarnish their business reputation even if no customer data was lost and that it could take them years to overcome the results of a disclosure both in terms of their reputation as well as resultant financial liabilities that might arise simply in response to disclosure. That's because many lawyers are ready to file class action cases at the slightest hint of a breach on the basis that a company will settle rather than fight to prove that a breach of customer data didn't occur.

So, they hide the fact that they were breached hoping that nobody will find out. But, sooner or later, the word gets out, somebody 'spills the beans' and now the situation is likely to be worse than if they had simply reported the breach as soon as it had happened.

When it comes to breaches, small business are subject to fraud including:

  1. Fraudulent credit cards
  2. Fraudulent loans
  3. Counterfeit checks
  4. Filing of fake tax returns

But fraud doesn't just happen to small business; in fact, the IRS has reported that fake tax returns are up by as much as 250%. If the IRS can be hit by fraudulent tax returns, what makes you think that your small business is somehow immune from fraud?

Probably the single biggest downside of any fraudulent activity when it comes to your small business, no matter what the source, is the clean-up that's required. It can take anywhere from months to years, especially as I mentioned earlier in regard to your company's reputation. Many times legal help is needed to prove the activity was fraudulent. Restoring your credit worthiness can be a real mess as well.

What Criminals are after in Your Small Business

In a breach of your system or data, you could have any number of data types stolen that subject you and your company to liability. The prime information that cyber criminals target are:

  • Federal Tax ID Numbers
  • Bank Accounts Numbers
  • Computer Identification and/or Passwords
  • Owner or Employee Social Security Numbers
  • Customer Credit Card Numbers
  • Vendor/Merchant Identification Numbers

While data maybe 'breached' through computer hack, computer theft, phishing emails or telephone call information solicitation as well as stolen mail (including stolen checks), don't forget that it could also be the result of an 'inside job.' You may only think that all of your employees are honest. In addition, employees accidentally leaving a 'flash (thumb) drive' with confidential information somewhere or exchanging passwords or providing their 'secure access virtual private network credentials' are common methods of internal forms of breach.

Recent statistics published by the national cyber security alliance:

  • On average, small businesses are targeted in 62% of all breaches
  • On average, costing them $38,000
  • 60% of small and medium sized businesses close after a breach

About QuickBooks Detect and Defend

QuickBooks Detect and Defend is designed to offer small businesses both a resolution and notification system in the event fraud is detected to help those businesses properly respond in cases of fraud.

QuickBooks Detect and Defend offers:

  • Dark web monitoring
  • Business credit monitoring
  • US – Based Certified Resolution Specialist

In addition they offer:

  • Live Support
  • a Data Breach and Incident Readiness Toolkit
  • a Data Security with Online Identity Vault
  • a Business Information Security Planning and Self-Assessment
  • Loss of Stolen Wallet and Document Assistance

When QuickBooks Detect and Defend suspects fraud, their first step is to email an alert to notify the business of suspicious activity. If they get no response, they initiate a phone call to the designated business contact.

The suspicious activity can then be reviewed and either dismissed, or if the activity is fraudulent, a case can be opened for the next level of fraud response.

In addition to being notified when fraudulent activity is suspected, businesses can view the dashboard anytime, helping them to be credit aware.

QuickBooks Detect & Defend feels a lot like other major credit fraud protectors with great features. But because of this new partnership with QuickBooks, small businesses who opt in to QuickBooks Detect & Defend receive the special pricing (shown above) so it actually costs less than going directly to the EZShield website direct.