- Georgia has lost out on $156 million from financial crimes.
- Small businesses bare the brunt of fraud due to a lack of resources to bounce back.
- Watch the video to hear from neighbors who have experienced these crimes firsthand.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT
Georgia is currently the No. 1 state for financial fraud rates, and many small businesses here in the Azalea City are feeling the pain.
“These people will stop at nothing to get your money”
I’m Malia Thomas, and I’m speaking with local businesses who have been targeted by deposit fraud, and how they’re protecting themselves.
This is Greg Farrar, the corporate control for Valdosta Ace Electric for the last 20 years.
He was recently the target of a fraud scheme targeting the company's bank accounts and two-party wire authentication.
"This was a very unusual circumstance; it started with over 100 phone calls."
The schemers targeting Ace had been eyeing their financials prior to targeting Greg's phone, attempting to access their records and accounts.
"We found out after the fact, had infiltrated my computer system or our computer system, got through the firewall and attached some software to my computer and had been kind of monitoring to me for about a month."
Stories like Greg are why Ameris Bank and Valdosta's Chamber of Commerce are trying to educate neighbors on financial deposit fraud.
While Greg and Ace Electric made it out unscathed, many do not.
Just in Georgia alone, businesses and individuals alike have lost out on over $156 million to financial fraud, with targets being the elderly and smaller shops who don't have the resources to fend it off.
"Not only have we dealt with businesses with this issue, we hear at the Chamber deal with it too."
Christie Moore, our chamber of Commerce's CEO, tells me with the rise in financial crimes since COVID, its a priority for them to keep the Azalea City educated.
Greg agrees, and tells me local businesses need to take action.
"People need to really take this serious. I mean, it's, you know, we monitor our stuff every day. That's part of my job is being controller and people really need to pay attention to this stuff."
The Southern District has been prosecuting nearly $11 million in fraud since COVID. In Valdosta, I’m Malia Thomas, reporting for ABC27.
