How to Reduce Check Fraud With MICR Technology

Author: Source Technologies

According to PwC’s 2022 Global Economic Crime and Fraud Survey, 46% of companies experienced fraud in the past 24 months. To put that in perspective, that’s about a $42 billion loss due to fraud.

Fraudsters are continually becoming more advanced as technology evolves, finding new loopholes to steal financial data. Many businesses are turning toward biometric technology and other security features to help safeguard financial assets, but there is one financial document that’s easily overlooked when assessing fraud risks: the check.

Without careful vigilance, financial institutions and businesses face significant vulnerability to check fraud.

For example, many financial institutions don’t know that a check was forged until weeks after it was deposited and the individual received the money. By the time the business realizes what has happened, it’s too late to go back — and this financial loss ends up affecting their bottom line.

How can businesses ensure check fraud protection? The answer is in MICR technology solutions.

 

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If you’ve been on the hunt for a secure check printer for your financial institution or small business, you may have heard the word MICR (magnetic ink character recognition) quite a few times.

MICR printers use a special type of toner to print the MICR line at the bottom of checks. This line consists of the check number, account number, and bank routing number.

Having an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) compliant MICR solution is critical to your business because the Federal Reserve requires that checks be printed with MICR toner for ease of processing. Although it should be standard for businesses to use MICR solutions anytime they need to print secure checks, some still don’t. 

Some businesses choose to use a regular laser printer to print off payroll checks or other official documents. This can be a cheap check printing alternative in the short term, but your business may run into fraud issues or bank reject fees later down the road if you aren’t using an ISO-compliant MICR printer.

Other reasons why your business should use MICR solutions:

  • Eliminates pre-printed check stock

  • Offers a secure and reliable method of on-demand check printing

  • Adheres to compliance standards

  • Quickens the check printing process

 

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If you are ready to take control of your business’s financial security, it’s time to use a check printing solution you trust. 

At Source Technologies, we provide our customers with MICR solutions that adhere to the document preparation standards that govern the quality of the printed check document for accuracy in the reading and sorting clearance process. 

Still not sure if MICR technology is right for your business? Connect with our team to get a virtual overview of our MICR printing solutions to see our products in action.