CPA Fraud Alert: Scammers are Now Using ADP Logos to Commit Fraud

Rick_E_Norris_An_Accountancy_Corporation_CPA_Fraud_Alert_Scammers_Are_Now_Using_ADP_Logos_To_Commit_FraudI have seen spam emails from “banks” trying to get into your bank account, but this is the first email from a scammer claiming to be from a payroll company.  It does seem like a logical rouse because payroll companies need social security numbers.  By clicking into their fraudulent plan, they are trying to get an administrator’s password which would allow access to hundreds of employees’ information.  Wow.

Here is how it looks:

On the top of the page is an ADP logo with a hyperlink to the scammer’s site.  The text states:

“A copy of your ADP TotalSource Payroll Invoice for the following payroll is is [sic] attached in [sic] PDF file and available for viewing.”

Year: 13

Week No: 08

Payroll: 1

There is a link to open a file and a warning that reads “This email was generated by an automated notification system.  If you have any questions regarding the invoice or you have misplaced your MyTotalSource login information, please contact your Payroll Service Representative.  Please do not reply to the email directly.”

The first sign are the grammatical errors.  (Professional hint:  If you are going to be a scammer, you should take a remedial English writing course.)

The second trouble sign is that the email comes from a guy named Jihadl in Africa.  Maybe  ADP outsources around the world, but I don’t think they have any alliances in Africa.  Therefore if you ignore their note and reply directly, you will be talking to Jhadl.  Lucky him. (Maybe we should all respond to him crashing his inbox with 100,000 emails.)

The third sign that if you were to move your cursor over their hyperlinks, you would probably find that the hyperlinks lead to a site other than ADP.

The best advice is that you should not open anything looking for private information if you are tired.  Instead, call ADP or any of your alliances before going forward.  The little time it takes to check things out can prevent a monumental disaster of compromising your employees’ personal information.

Have You Received Fraudulent Bank Emails? Here Are Some Tips to Protect Yourself.

Rick_E_Norris_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Have_You_Recieved_Fraudulent_Bank_Emails_Here_Are_Some_Tips_to_Protect_YourselfI love Fraudsters.  They make me laugh at their little games.  Have you gotten emails asking that you “confirm” your secret bank information?  But how do you know what is legitimate  and what is                                                                             not?  Here are some                                                                                 tips:

  1. Banks, the IRS, and other institutions do not ask you to provide your information.  Automatically, you should consider such “security prevention” as “phishing.”
  2. If you think there is a problem with your bank, don’t use the email to log in.  Go to the site from a bookmark or Google search and log on the way you would normally do.
  3. Look at the address of the party who is sending the email.  The email below came from SMChaseNotification@ChaseNotification.com. If you log into the REAL Chase bank, you would see www.chase.com or www.chaseonline.chase.com.  I copied the link and put it into my browser and my Chrome browser gave me a warning sign that it was tagged as a phishing site.
  4. Now if you ran your cursor over the “Continue to the verification process:” you would see that it does not point to a Chase Bank site, but www.csedesignsolutions.com/js/restrectedonline.php . This obviously is NOT Chase, and notice the misspelling of “restrictedonline.” Just too funny.  If you are going to cheat me, you better be a good speller.
  5. But the best part, was the bottom. I almost missed it.  Under the E-mail Security Information, they enter the REAL Chase websites.  So, people click there and say, “OK, it’s Chase.”  Clever little devils.
  6. I also looked up Dana Ingle and there is a Linked In person stating that they were educated at Ohio State and was the Vice President of Operations and Fraud.  Was this a fraudulent Linked In account?  Go figure.
  7. Do Not Click on any of these hypelinks.  You never know.   They could load  viruses on your computer (I dismantled them for this article.)
Beware!  Don’t “Chase” it.
URGENT: Account Verification Required
Dear Chase OnlineSM Customer:
As part of our ongoing effort to protect your account and our relationship,
we monitor your account for possible fraudulent and or unusual activity. We need to confirm your identity
as same as information we have on file and your account security:
Please
click on continue to the verification process and ensure your identity as
same as information we have on file and your account security:
Continue to the verification process:
Your satisfaction is important to us, and we appreciate your prompt attention
to this matter. If you already had the opportunity to discuss this matter
with us, please disregard this message. You may also call 800-355-5265
from the U.S. and Canada. If you prefer, use the phone number on the back of
your Chase Debit card. Internationally, you can reach us at 866-686-6670.
For your convenience, we are available to take your call 24 hours a day,7
days a week.
Thank you for being our customer.
Sincerely,
Dana Ingle
Vice President
Chase Security Prevention Department
E-mail
Security Information
E-mail intended for: Your Chase Account On File .

If you are concerned about the authenticity of this message, please
click here or call the phone number on the
back of your debit card. If you would like to learn more about e-mail
security or want to report a suspicious e-mail,   click here .
Note: If you are concerned about clicking links in this
e-mail, the Chase Online services mentioned above can be accessed by
typing   www.chase.com
directly into your browser.

CPA Fraud Alert: The Day the FAKE Giorgio Armani “Rep” Tried to Rip Me Off

Rick_E_Norris_An_Accountancy_Corporation_CPA_Fraud_Alert_The_Day_The_Fake_Giorgio_Armani_Rep_Tried_to_rip_Me_offI slipped the money from the ATM into my wallet as I hurried to my car.  “Hey, excuse’!” I stopped.  A young man yelled out his car window in the parking lot. “Can you a tell me to aeroporto?”

I answered using what broken Italian I knew.  He was very grateful, and I told him my family was Calabresi.  “Hey, me a too!  My name is a  Gianni!” He said.   Gianni pulled his car over and told me he wanted to give me a present.  He gave me his business card which read Giorgio Armani in big letters.  Then he opened up his back door and showed my three “Giorgio Reportage Armani” leather jackets.

“I a give a to you.  They are a worth $500 each.  I don’t want to pay the taxes on them when I leave the country to fly back to Italy right now. ” He yelled. (I thought, why would HE pay any excise taxes for Giorgio Armani?)

He put a handled paper bag in my hand and folded the three coats in them.  I started to laugh.  Then my phone rang.  It was my oldest son.  “Sorry Brandon, I can’t talk right now, I am busy being swindled, ” I laughed.

I waited for the punch line, still smiling broadly.

“Hey, you a my friend.  Take them as my gift.”  Then he paused. “Oh, tomorrow is my son’s birthday and I would like to give him a present.  Can you give me whatever cash you can?”

I doubled over laughing, still holding the bag.  That was the worst con I heard in  a long time.  I opened the car door and stuck the bag in the back seat.

“Ciao,” I said getting into my car, still laughing.

So, what precautions should you take when approached by someone like this:

  1. If it is too good to be true, it probably is: As a CPA, I have  conducted fraud investigations, or exposed deficiencies in internal control.  So, I am skeptical in any bargain. You should always start from a skeptical frame of mind and make the other party earn your confidence.  Start with “the smell test.” If your intuition is tells you “no,” go with it and don’t look back.
  2. Don’t venture outside of your expertise: The one thing that Gianni didn’t factor was that I don’t buy clothes.  My wardrobe consists of birthday and Christmas presents.  My wife buys things for me from time to time.  But, I hate shopping, especially clothes.  When my wife takes me to a mall, I bring a book and carry her packages. So, if you don’t know anything about an  item, don’t buy it.
  3. Don’t let anyone pressure you: Gianna spoke very fast and tried to increase the tempo of the transaction in order to cloud my thinking.  Most people will say, “I have another offer.”  Or, ” This deal will not last.”  Take a breath and step back.  If the person continues to talk, shut him down.
  4. Look at all available data:  If I had time, I could have looked closer at his card.  Here is what I discovered after I left:
    1. He did not have an Armani email address.  His  email address is Armanirep@yahoo.it.  It bounced when I tried it later.
    2. His address read Milano, but the phone number is in an American format 335-565-3504.  The number was no good.  An Italian number would have looked like +39 02 7602 1743.
    3. I found a number of scams on the Internet selling the same fraudulent brand. https://reviews.ebay.com/How-to-Spot-a-Fake-Armani-Men-apos-s-Leather-Jacket?ugid=10000000002354776
    4. Here is a similar incident to one who caved in. https://www.ripoffreport.com/organized-crime/rga-giorgio-armani-r/rga-giorgio-armani-reportage-l-2d487.htm
  5. Don’t be afraid to say no to a “great” deal: “Once in a lifetime chances” usually come by all of the time.  As I said to my son who could not close a deal with his first car, “Good deals come by all of the time.  If you miss one, look for the next.  But, bad deals  will hurt you a long time, financially and emotionally.”

As a CPA. I have seen many shady dealings in the last 30 years.  I guess part of my CPA training help me become a financial skeptic.  Don’t be afraid to look at something from many different angles.  You can also call on your CPA or financial professional to help you.

Check Out The Podcast! Click Link Below!Improving Business
Episode #2 The Story Of ThePhony Giorgio Armani Salesperson Scam Artist & HowTo Avoid Rip-off artists

 

Web-centricity: An Opportunity for Business Technology Management

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Web_Centricity_An_Opportunity_For_Business_Technology_Management

Have you ever built a toy race car? I remember the first little pocket wooden race car I built for my son’s Cub Scout race.  I did it once when I was a Cub Scout, so we worked on it together.  We made a reasonably good-looking car, and got it rolling nice and straight.  I thought we did a pretty good                                                                           job…

…until we arrived at the race.  Some of the fathers were engineers and very versitile in wood carving and aerodynamics.  Our car looked like a shoe box racing against formula one cars.

We were outgunned, and so will you if your small business doesn’t try to stay abreast of the new technology.  The April 2011 McKinsey Quarterly article, How new Internet standards will finally deliver a mobile revolution by Bengi Korkmaz, Richard Lee, and Ickjin Park, tells of such a game-changer.  A new word, web-centricity.  The article tells of the next generation of HTML, called HTML5.  The article claims, “The next generation of the Internet standard essentially will allow programs to run through a Web browser rather than a specific operating system. That means consumers will be able to access the same programs and cloud-based content from any device—personal computer, laptop, smartphone, or tablet—because the browser is the common platform.”

What this means is your phone becomes as powerful as your desktop because it will have the capability of running tasks, not as apps, but as cloud computing software stored on remote servers.

As an entertainment business manager, this has implications to my clients who are artists.  Sometimes, the only thing limiting their creativity are the tools they have to work with.  As a CPA business consultant, I struggle to teach my small-medium business clients to adjust their strategies in lieu of the horizon the lays ahead of them.  You “skate to where the puck will be,” not to where your competition has already ventured.

So, what does this mean?  Do you go out and buy every technological improvement that comes on the shelf?  The obvious answer is no.  To be more successful than your competition, is to develop a strategy that includes the tactics of keeping your ear to the ground.  The web provides a plethora of information to those who take the time to access it.

As a business consultant CPA, I strive to alert my clients with anything that can benefit them.  But opportunities are a kiss in the dark.  You can easily miss one if your eyes are closed.

Community Business Strategy: Love Your Neighbor as Yourself, and Maybe Even Turn a Profit

 

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Community_Business_Strategy_Love_Your_Neighbor_As_Yourself_And_Maybe_Even_Turn_A_Profit

“Art is what you can get away with.”  Andy Warhol.

Almost three years ago, I co-founded a local art charity called Foundation of Local Arts.  Our mission was (and is) to support and educate the South Bay about art.  We produced local shows and gatherings raising money for the local school art programs that were being drastically cut.  When we needed donations, press, or volunteers, we approach the local Manhattan Beach businesses.

An article by a Ms. Thursday Bram, Build Your Local Economy to Build Your Business reminded me of the value of business community involvement.  The article set out a little strategy, but it really didn’t go far enough from a strategy point of view.  For example, let’s say you want to support a local environmental charity.  Let’s do a quick little analysis using the SWOT tool and look at a business charity community strategy:

  1. Strengths: What does your business have to offer to the charity other than money.  Money is good, but you, and your business, have certain strengths that can both benefit the charity, and showcase your business.  Let’s say you are a restaurant.  Perfect!  Donate food, or at least provide it at cost.  You will build up good will, help a needy cause, and demonstrate your restaurant’s skills.
  2. Weaknesses:  What aren’t you good at?  Let’s say your restaurant doesn’t recycle, or operates wastefully with water.  That is not a good thing if you are going to support an environmental charity.  You may want to wait until you clean up your act before supporting this type of organization.
  3. Opportunities:Once you get a reputation as a civic leader, opportunities run amok.  Don’t over extend your business, or yourself.  Set your tactics in light of your overall strategy.
  4. Threats: If you choose to support PETA, you might alienate your business because of political ramifications.  On the other hand, if you are in a community that strongly supports dogs, the choice may be beneficial.  View you business involvement through both charitable and business eyes.

Many business owners work 80 hours a week and claim they have no time for community and charity.  Creating a synergy between their business, their charitable passion, and their community may just bring back the balance (and for many the purpose) that they lack in life.

Venture Capital Risks: As a Business Owner, Don’t Give Them Your First Born

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Venture_Capital_Risks_As_A_Business_Owner_Don't_Give_Them_Your_First_Born

Everyone loves to hear of a business gamble that pans out big time.  As a business manager for entertainers, I have worked for some big names.  Over 25 years ago, I learned from my mentor that he started as a TV lawyer in the early 1950s. The field was wide open and attorneys not only tested the legal waters, but also their billing practices.  My employer started with an unemployed writer who needed some contract negotiations.  He didn’t know what to charge the writer, so at this early stage, he took 10% of the writer’s new production company.  My mentor charged for his services soon after that, but in the 1980s he cashed in his 10% holding when the writer/producer “went public.”  The unemployed writer had evolved into one of the biggest names in television.

The Don Charlton article, The Most Important Word When Raising Money for a Small Business, reminded me of that conversation.  What is a start-up willing to bargain with an angel investor for cash or services?   Mr. Charlton stated, “The best piece of advice I can provide is one that was given to me recently: change your mindset from ‘give up’ to ‘trade.'”

Now, this is good advice, but how does one wrap their arms around “trading?”  I’d like to give his advice some teeth:

  1. Always use a lawyer:  This can be costly, so try to negotiate a ceiling to the legal fees.
  2. Exit plan for your angel investor Set a time limit with some required milestones that would “cash out” the angel investor.  For example, if the company’s net worth reaches $10 million by five years, the investor will receive 30% of that amount or more if valued higher.
  3. Create multiple classes of venture capital ownership: If you use an LLC, as oppose to an S-corporation, you can create different levels of ownership along with different rights.  Make your class of ownership different than your angel investors with a bigger upside.

We are approached weekly for our expertise in business plans and strategic planning.  We see so many new owners who are looking for angel investors.  As a new business owner, lay out the possibilities like those I stated above.  Your attorney can counsel you as to the application to your situation.

Business Proposals: If You Can’t Stand the Heat, Find a Cooler Kitchen

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Business_Proposals_If_You_Cant_Stand_The_Heat_Find_A_Cooler_Kitchen

They sat perched on the kitchen stools like two vultures waiting for the next customer. The problem?  The pickings were slim.

My stepfather and his friend, Dan, decided to open their own plumbing business, but they only had one client, a Beverly Hills house designer, who didn’t need them that day, or the next.  So, they sat by the phone talking about the employer they just quit.  Dan, a Texas plumber, who  took one bath a week whether he needed it or not, puffed on his cheap cigar.

That was the last straw for my mother.  Out they went.  Their business model needed some work, but it wasn’t going to be done in her kitchen.

Mike Periu talks about flawed business plans in his article, 3 Signs That Your Business Model is Flawed.  Here is what he has to say:

  1. Accounts Receivables and Accounts Payables are ignored:  Mike is correct, but not in every situation.  I prepared two recent business plans and ignored the accrual basis because one was a market, and the other a movie studio.  Both require payment for goods and services at the time of the sale, or at least every week.  To create AR and AP just for the sake of creating it would not add to the business plan value.  But with that said, if you are a manufacturer or service company that does not collect cash immediately, then you must stagger your income based on some reasonable collection scheme.
  2. Your income taxes aren’t calculated correctly:This is elementary to most accountants.  However, recent business plans we have prepared are for flow-through entities where taxes are paid at the shareholder level. It is very hard to project taxes for the shareholders since each of their tax situations will differ.  However, in the case of deferred distributions, we did make an assumption to distribute tax monies for profits recognized.
  3. Sales forecasts are calculated using the top-down approach: This is probably good advice, that we have practiced, but with a different perspective.  We don’t look at market share, but compare similar companies in the business plan we created.  Then for the first two years, we have discounted the revenue and built it up slowly until the company was earning what a similar company in size would.

     Business plans, strategic planning, business models, business proposals, what every you call it, take an objective eye.  It is nice to dream, but dreams don’t pay the rent.  Usually, clients that come to us require 2-3 times the investment than they projected just to stay afloat before the business becomes sustainable.

Business proposals need a disinterested financial person that can give a candid assessments about your assumptions.  Prepare for a worse case scenario is better for the solicitors, and the investors. If your investors object to this assessment, you are working in the wrong kitchen, and have to find another to cook up a business proposal.

How to Create a Successful Small Business in this New Economy, or How Old Shep Let Me Down

 

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_How_To_Create_A_Successful_Small_Business_In_This_New_Economy_Or_How_Old_Shep_Let_Me_Down

“Teach something to the 5th graders?” She said.  “Like what?” I replied.

Thus the conversation between me and my son’s 5th grade music teacher began.  It was true, my father was a Rockabilly recording artist in the 1950s, and even though I had played guitar since I was five (unprofessionally), I worked in the entertainment industry for years.  But talk to an elementry school’s music class?

I bit my nails, and agreed.

The next week, I taught the kids to follow their hearts when choosing their careers. Of course, that was a long way off for fifth graders, but they dreamed, too.  My method was to start out by singing an old Elvis ballad, Old Shep. The song spoke of  a boy who had to put his sick dog “down.” The dog had saved the boy’s life when he was younger.

The song Old Shep was a tear jerker. I thought it would get the kid’s interest before I told them how to be happy, and successful in what they do for a living.

I was wrong.

As it turned out, I was the only one tearing up.  Still, I got the message across: Follow your passion.

Mike Michalowicz’s article 5 Ways to Find Your Hidden Talents reminded me of my little talk.  In the article he set forth five suggestions to find you hidden talents: Listen to Others, Determine what is easy, do what you enjoy, do what you like to talk about, and ask your friends.

I didn’t quite agree with all of his points.  You may be better at something than your friends, but that doesn’t mean that you are passionate about it, or that it will help you start a great business.

Small business is a risk, but it should be one that you are passionate about.  Nobody knows better than you, as to what gets your creative business juices flowing.

So, don’t ask people, ask yourself.  What do you dream about as a small business?  This was the third point that Mike suggested, but I would restate it as doing a small business what you most enjoy.

His second point was to determine what was easy.  Sometimes that works, but usually if it is easy, then someone else has already tried it.  The better advice is to find the Blue Ocean where competition becomes irrelevant.  It may be easy, or it may be more challenging in your small business, but it will certainly set your small business apart.

What Mike was missing in becoming a great small business were two things: Do something that is economically feasible, and do something that will make your small business the best in the world.  These two  addional suggestions are stated in a book by Jim Collins in Good to Great.  They were two of the three wheels in the secret to greatness.  The third was already mentioned, passion.

As I have stated before, there is not a better time in the last 100 years to start a small business.  But, the odds of a small business becoming great, are large.  A business owner, or an employee must start with the three pillars if they are to be successful as a small business.  Then have someone help you with a professional looking business plan whether you are looking for investors or not for your small business.  The business plan will refine your strategy by showing your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.  Any new small business owner must look carefully at themselves before taking the greater risk.

Internet Ad Revenue Breaks Record. Are You a Spectator or a Player?

 

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Internet_Add_Revenue_Breaks_Record_Are_You_A_Spectator_or_A_PlayerWhen I was 13 (1970), my stepfather took me and a friend to the Olympic Auditorium to see one of my favorite wrestling heroes, Rocky Johnson.  I thought this guy was so cool, and I thoroughly enjoyed his coolness in wrestling.  My stepfather on the other hand, laughed at me when I got upset because Rocky’s nemesis, Freddie Blassie, would bite him on the forehead when the ref turned his back. It pissed me off  to see my hero lose the match through unfairness.  So, my stepfather took me to the live match in downtown Los Angeles to show me that it was all fake.

He was right, but I was still entertained.  Not by the wrestlers, but by the adult people in the audience.  Even though they could see the fake punches and kicks, they were into it as if they were in the ring.  What a hoot!  But as history was being made in the ring, the audience did not (and probably could not) become a part of it.

Such is the case of the Internet which is changing the way we do business every day.  In the AP article, US Internet Ad Revenue Hits Record in 2010 by Barbara Ortutay, the author reports another record set by those who advertise on the Internet.  Now, remember, these are Internet companies who are paying hard dollars to get to you through your computer.  It does not count those of us who do not advertise but, reach our target audience by serving them, and contributing to the dissemination of knowledge.

The question is, are you participating in Internet history, or are you watching it pass you by?  Just think of how much you rely on Google and Opentable, not to mention apps like Yelp and Groupon.  What are you doing in your business life to contribute to history?  Just like when  George C Scott said to the West Point graduates.  “Thirty years from now, when you’re sitting around your fireside with your grandson on your knee and he asks you, ‘What did you do in the great World War II,’ you won’t have to say, ‘Well… I shoveled shit in Louisiana.'”

It doesn’t cost anything to start a blog.  It doesn’t cost anything to feed the machine.  I tell my clients (even those in the entertainment industry), today is the best time to promote yourself in the history of the United States.  It takes three things:

  1. Creativity
  2. Persistence
  3. Ignorance of the fear of failing

Check out some of our other articles that may help you.  Life is too short to sit back when you can make a difference in your business and personal life, and the lives of others.  Don’t be one of those who dwell on the days of shovelling shit, when you could be one who contributed to feeding the masses.

Can You Grow your Business Social Footprint, without Putting it in Your Mouth?

 

Rick_E_Norris,_An_Accountancy_Corporation_Can_You_Grow_Your_Business_Social_Footprint_Without_Putting_It_In_Your_Mouth

You walk into a party and a sharply-dressed grey-haired guy (not me, I’m in my boxers right now) shakes your hand.  Sporting a toothpaste commercial grin, he says,” Let me tell you about the value of owning a silver-plated casket!” You respectively try to talk your way out of it, but before you do, a slim red-haired woman, sporting a noticeable over-bite grabs your arm. “Hi.  I’ve been feeling your energy from across the room, and there are past lives that want to surface in you…Make an appointment with me, and I will work them out for you at a discounted rate.”

Twitter is a cocktail party. When I scroll down on Twitter, I am always annoyed by those that just say, “Buy mine!  Buy Mine!”  They offer nothing that can inform me and help me.  Why would I buy anything from them?

Others post words of wisdom (or at least they think they are), like “Is forever longer than always?–Dolly Parton.” How pathetic.

So, I welcomed the article How to Spread Your Business Social Footprint Around the Web by Josh Catone.  Josh, who obviously has a social networking background graces us with a few good points on how to increase your social footprint, or profile.

  1. Be Everywhere:  Josh points out a good fact, but as business people, we only have so much time to spend hitting many of the social networks.  I would suggest that a business person choose where they have the most impact and traffic.  Then, you can use your employees, in a limited way, to social bookmark your site in various other networks.  One hour per employee a week can make a big difference in your exposure.
  2. Participate in the Conversation:  This is my point above.  Participate by being constructive and helpful.  You will not find any of my blogs pitching the reader.  The author should write to help and to display the author’s knowledge.
  3. Share your expertise:  As I said, show what you know.  There is too much knowledge for any of us to know everything, so we are in this together building each other up to create a better society, and smarter business persons.

The points above are tactics to the strategy of growing your business.  Don’t be stuck in the 20th century and ignore the web.  I bet your competitors aren’t.