What Do You Get for the Secure MICR Check Printer Price?

By Kevin Forrester | April 22, 2015

Two Words: Cost Savings

This may seem counterintuitive. After all, a secure MICR check printer costs more than a regular, non-secure MICR printer. That’s because there are substantial differences between secure MICR check printers versus regular MICR printers that do not offer the same level of security needed in financial institutions.

A regular MICR check printer with no security features allows businesses to print checks and achieve minimal compliance with the Federal Reserve’s requirements. That’s it.

You won’t see much in the way of cost savings with a regular MICR printer. However, a secure MICR check printer offers hard savings in paper costs, significantly reduces the risk of fraud and automates manual processes for most financial institutions. Viewed by many as the best check printers available in the industry, these types of secure MICR solutions help financial institutions comply with federal mandates while providing extra security layers, offering longer-lasting benefits that pay for themselves over and over again.

What You Get for the Secure Check Printer Price: More Bang for Your Long-Term Buck

1. A secure MICR printing solution provides a cost savings of 90% in paper expenses alone:

Average Cost Per Item using pre-printed checks: $2.13
Average Cost Per Item using MICR Solution blank check stock: $0.21
This equates to banks and other financial institutions saving $1.92 per check

2. Financial institutions are significantly better protected with secure check printers in place, as they can feature more than 15 security benefits specifically designed to combat check fraud.

3. A secure MICR printing solution offers features to prevent human error when it comes to printing checks:

MICR Toner Detection: This feature helps to avoid bank rejects by making it impossible to print checks unless MICR toner is loaded into the printer. No one has to remember to check the printer for MICR toner. Secure check printers simply will not print checks unless MICR toner cartridges are installed.
Set Copies to 1: This setting tells the printer to print the job only once. Duplicate checks cannot be printed, delivering an additional layer of protection from fraud attempts.
Jam Recovery Off: This feature prevents duplicate checks from being printed. When a check job is sent to the printer, Jam Recovery is automatically turned off.

With Secure MICR Solutions, You Truly Get What You Pay For

Below is a more detailed view of all the security features financial institutions have access to when secure MICR check printers are deployed:

Secure MICR Check Printer Feature	Benefits	Description
MICR Toner Detection	Prevents printing of MICR documents with regular toner; prevents very expensive bank reject fees	Detects whether MICR toner or regular toner is installed in the printer
Set Copies to One (1)	Prevents fraud by disallowing the printing of multiple document copies	A PCL setting that tells the printer to print the job only once
Jam Recovery turned off	Prevents fraud by disallowing the printing of multiple check copies	Automatically turns Jam Recovery OFF when checks are being printed
Secure Numeric Font	Additional layer of security at the document level; minimizes risk of fraud	Unique font designed by Source Technologies that is very difficult to alter; there is a special background and very small text/numeric print embedded in the amount line of the check
Microprint Font	Additional layer of security at the document level; minimizes risk of fraud	Extremely small type font allows one to embed micro text and numbers inside lines of print on a MICR document; Denoted by the letters “MP”
ICR Numeric Font	Additional layer of security at the document level; minimizes risk of fraud	Image-readable secure font designed to be read by imaging equipment utilized by many banks and financial institutions
Password Protections	Prevents unauthorized access to MICR and secure fonts, signatures and overlays	Prevents access to check-printing resources (stored signatures, MICR fonts, form overlays) without the proper password
Front Panel Security Lock	Ensures only approved users can print checks	Additional security beyond password protection; user must enter 8-digit combination prior to printing
Toner Low Warnings	Ensures quality MICR printing; prevents bank reject fees	Printer alerts user when MICR toner is low
DES Encryption/Decryption	One of the highest levels of security available; delivers data stream protection	Print data stream is encrypted as it is being transmitted to the printer; MICR printer decrypts before printing
Audit Trail	Gives user a written record of check printing activity	Creates user-defined reports of check printing activity for auditing purposes
Auto Density Control for Toner	Ensures conformance and bank acceptance; prevents bank reject fees	Ensures conformance to signal strength standards throughout cartridge life
Originally Manufactured MICR toner cartridge	No “refilled” or “remanufactured” cartridges to introduce potential problems that would damage the printer	Toner cartridges are built and tested using only MICR toner
Regulated Fuser Temperature for Optimum Performance	Prevents fraud; maximizes toner adherence; toner will not “lift off” easily	Fusing temperature controlled to match MICR toner and check stock paper weights
Tray Locking	Prevents fraud; check stock is safe; reduces paper waste	Key lock on printer and drawers
Datastream Tray Protection	Ensures only checks are printed on check paper; reduces waste	Limits the ability of non-MICR jobs to print from specified trays