BUSINESS CRIMES AND HOW TO AVOID THEM

Running a company is a tough job, especially if you have a large team to oversee. While we’d like to think we know and trust our employees, occasionally there are some that surprise us in the worst way. Businesses are often susceptible to criminals stealing information, ideas and money, but there are a number of precautionary measures you can take to prevent this.

Theft

If your place of work stores a lot of products or cash, theft is surely one of the most prevalent crimes affecting your business? Trusting employees with large amounts of money and expensive stock is a risk, but this can be successfully mitigated using CCTV cameras, stock takes and employee monitoring.

Espionage

Business espionage or industrial espionage refers to theft of ideas, data or knowledge. Competitors may place spies in your workforce to acquire trade secrets or technologies without you even realizing. A forensic investigator in Texas can help track your employees’ activity and detect any fraudulent behavior.

Embezzlement

Embezzlement involves employees using and abusing the company’s funds for their own needs. They may falsely acquire assets or covertly direct money their own way, effectively stealing from the business. Keep a close eye on any employees you suspect are doing this, and make sure there is more than one person dealing with financial matters – one individual should not have all the power and access that would enable them to commit these crimes.

Forgery

Falsifying documents or altering existing ones is a small but hugely illegal act that could cause massive problems for your business. Employees may forge contracts, receipts, deeds and other documents, so be sure to have a stringent verification system in place and keep important paperwork locked away from those who don’t need access.

If you’re looking for a certified fraud examiner or a forensic expert to investigate your employees, contact ICFECI today.

Resource: https://www.icfeci.com/business-crimes-and-how-to-avoid-them/

UNDERSTANDING WHY PEOPLE LIE

Quite often in cases of wrongful conviction, the accused is incorrectly identified as the perpetrator based on information given by others. While forensic and biological evidence is largely irrefutable, human evidence is not so undeniable. If you are accused of a crime you didn’t commit, you might be wondering why people would want to lie and frame you for it. When you are trying to prove your innocence, it can be an incredibly frustrating and confusing process that will make you question everything and trust no one. Hiring a forensic investigator in Fort Worth Texas can make all the difference, as we have a variety of techniques that can prove falsified testimonies to get your life back on track.

Getting help from the authorities

We are not suggesting that the police offer bribes or blackmail witnesses. What is common, however, is that people believe they can get something in exchange for their information. This may be a change in circumstances, e.g. more favorable welfare housing, or a lesser sentence if they are incarcerated.

Blackmail

Convincing someone to say something or do something is easier when their freedom is at stake. Putting you in a position where you must defend your innocence makes you incredibly vulnerable, especially if they hold the power to exonerate you.

Protecting the guilty

When people lie, it’s usually because they have something to hide. When authorities discover that a witness has given them false information, suspicion is then directed at the witness as police question their motivations for lying. Giving false testimony in this case may indicate their own guilt, or it may suggest they know the true perpetrator.

Excusing inappropriate behavior

We are all guilty of a few embarrassing acts. However some people take this guilt too far and accuse others to protect their own pride. This is often the case when someone engages in sexual intercourse and later regrets it. The plaintiff may think it’s easier to claim that the fling was unwanted, rather than admitting they were drunk and regretted the incident.

Gain or compensation

The witness may stand to gain or benefit somehow from falsely accusing you of the crime. A simple example of this would be a colleague alleging that you stole from your employer, whilst they evade detection and pocket the money.

There are a number of reasons why someone might lie in your case. Understanding their motivation can help you move forward and prove your innocence. Get in touch with ICFECI today to see how we can right this wrong and exonerate you.

Resource: https://www.icfeci.com/understanding-why-people-lie/

5 WAYS YOUR CELL PHONE CAN EXONERATE YOU

Our cell phones store an incredible amount of data. Nowadays we don’t even realize just how much information is contained in these devices, but it could be the difference between our freedom and our conviction. If you’ve been accused of a crime, cell phone data can help prove your innocence. Even if your device has been damaged, water logged or burnt, ICFECI can retrieve information that could be vital to your case.

Messages

No matter who you are or where you’re from, the likelihood is that you use your phone to message people on a regular basis. Whether that is through traditional SMS texts, WhatsApp or social media, most people use their cell to communicate every day. These messages can be very useful in a court of law. Let’s say for instance that you’re being accused of sleeping with an underage girl. The plaintiff might suggest that you were fully aware of her age as she had already told you. If you have a message where the girl claimed to be 18 or over, you have evidence to refute this.

Photos and videos

One of the great benefits of cell phones is the fact we can take photos and videos with such ease and speed. This media can also serve to provide evidence of your location, who you were with and what time you were there. If you were accused of something you didn’t do but had video evidence of the perpetrator committing the crime, this would be the perfect way to prove your innocence.

Call logs

In certain cases, the exact timing of calls can prove to be a key piece of information. Even if the content of the call itself or the people involved isn’t noteworthy, the timing can be crucial to a case. If a network provider can’t produce the logs, the phone itself keeps a record of who you rang, when and for how long the call lasted.

GPS

GPS can be a useful tool when you’re lost in a new neighborhood, but it can also help others to find you. Experts can track your location and pin down your coordinates using your phone’s GPS – helpful if you’ve lost your phone, or if you need to prove your whereabouts to the authorities.

IP Address

Fraud is rife on the internet, especially identity theft. If someone is posing as you, your IP address can help prove your innocence. If somebody is claiming to be you on a dating app, your IP address will be completely different from the one using the app.

Need help with retrieving cell phone data? Get in touch with ICFECI today to see what we can do.

Resource: https://www.icfeci.com/5-ways-your-cell-phone-can-exonerate-you/