Part 6 of our ongoing Fraud Awareness in the Church series will examine Credit Checks. PSK in cooperation with the National Association of Church Business Administration (NACBA) conducted a survey to determine the extent of fraud awareness in the church environment. We asked churches to respond to this statement: Our church conducts credit checks on financial employees and volunteers. While almost all churches […]
Part 11 of our ongoing Fraud in the Church series. PSK in cooperation with the National Association of Church Business Administration (NACBA) conducted a survey to determine the extent to which churches are attempting to address the problem of church fraud. We asked them to respond to this statement: Our church issues credit cards (in the church’s name) to employees and/or […]
Part 10 of our ongoing Fraud in the Church series. PSK in cooperation with the National Association of Church Business Administration (NACBA) conducted a survey to determine the extent to which churches are attempting to address the problem of church fraud. We asked them to respond to this statement: Our church has established a “Positive Pay” arrangement with our bank. Increasingly, […]
Part 5 of our ongoing Fraud in the Church series. PSK in cooperation with the National Association of Church Business Administration (NACBA) conducted a survey to determine the extent to which churches are attempting to address the problem of church fraud. We asked them to respond to this statement: Our church uses pre-numbered purchase orders or check requests. Theft of cash […]
Part 4 of our ongoing Fraud in the Church series. PSK in cooperation with the National Association of Church Business Administration (NACBA) conducted a survey to determine the extent to which churches are attempting to address the problem of church fraud. We asked them to respond to this statement: We present a list of authorized check signers to the Leadership Team. […]
There is a great difference in attitude in the church environment between receipts and disbursements. While churches exercise extreme vigilance over the “inflow” of funds into the church, many have a rather cavalier attitude towards the “outflow”. Churches also tend to rely on a few “fraud prevention” methods which in my opinion provide little more […]
“We have rotating count teams with clear rules that account for every penny we collect in offerings…” While this statement is not inaccurate, it is short-sighted. When churches think of fraud, Sunday offering protection is usually the first thing that comes to mind. And as a result, most churches do a very good job in […]
News stories about church funds being embezzled by an employee or clergy are common, but embezzlement by someone charged with oversight is rarely reported in the media. A Michigan based news site, www.mlive.com reported the following story on September 16, 2010: Former Birch Run church leader charged with embezzling more than $100k from congregation The […]
“Our bookkeeper has been a member and served our church for many years. We trust him/her completely…” Church’s Secretary accused of embezzling $1.5 million Former pastor guilty of stealing from church Church’s former secretary jailed on fraud charges Priests get jail for stealing from church Church secretary accused of stealing thousands Woman accused of stealing […]
“We require all checks to be signed by two officers of the church”. Dual controls, or separation of the accounting duties, are an important brick in the wall of fraud protection. Requiring dual signatures is often one of the ingredients in providing proper segregation of duties. But, if this practice is not combined with a […]