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The Criminal Mind

I once worked for a business that had only six full-time employees. Our office was one large room divided into cubicles. Every two weeks, the publisher of the magazine would prepare the payroll at a desk behind mine. He’d take a bundle of check stock that he’d ordered from an office supplies catalog and run it through a printer on his desk. It didn’t seem like such a big deal, because we all knew each other and were friends. After talking with document security experts for this issue of Print Solutions, however, I look at that experience in a different light.

I could have been a criminal.

If I were devious, I could have let myself into the office after hours (we all had keys), taken the check stock from its unsecured location, printed myself a nice bonus and forged my boss’ unremarkable signature. By the time the check cleared, I’d be in another country, and that magazine would be out of business. The first lesson of document security is to protect yourself against your own employees.

You and your customers may never have a problem with employees, but what about outside threats? The building we shared housed other businesses, and occasionally people from those businesses, their customers and various sales reps would wander into our office accidentally or to socialize. Two strangers once walked in while only my boss was there. While one talked to him about the weather, the other grabbed a laptop with our main contact database. Documents—electronic or paper—don’t get much more sensitive than that.

Attention to document security is growing, as more end users become aware of the risks and liabilities associated with fraud. The movement has two parts: the invention of more sophisticated security features and, more importantly, the development of comprehensive security standards. Print Solutions reports on companies involved in both parts, beginning on page 14.

Our industry should be a source for document security experts, but only a handful of manufacturers and distributors really know what they’re doing. They’re the ones who offer consultative relationships and develop complete solutions. Anyone can order checks from a catalog. Real protection comes from knowing the threats your customers face and how to combat them.

Andy Brown
Managing Editor
abrown@PSDA.org