On the Front Line: POS Solution Helps Retailers Prevent Fraud

The financial loss due to theft, fraud and inventory shrinkage in  2017 added up to a massive $46.8bn,  of which one third  was due to internal theft, according to an annual survey by the National Retail Federation.

Much of this internal theft happens at the point of sale, which is why countries such as France are adopting regulations designed to prevent fraud at the POS by  requiring that POS systems comply with new stricter procedures on how transactions are recorded.

To prevent fraud through cash registers and POS devices, French law now requires all businesses update their POS software to guarantee that data from every sales process is collected, stored, and archived securely and that it remains traceable in its integrity.

This puts your POS solution on the front line of fraud detection and prevention. As alternative payment methods and omnichannel options become more prevalent, fraud detection and prevention is a priority for retailers choosing a new retail POS system.

Stop last-minute item deletions

Previously, POS systems allowed businesses to avoid registering a sale and the taxes that go with it, particularly when it came to cash sales. It allowed them to “remove” a sale from the server and effectively wipe it from any digital record. In other words, employees could void items after a bill has been generated and the customer has paid for it.

Retailers can increase operational control over these potentially  fraudelent actions using a combination of more granular staff POS permissions, managers’ approvals and audit information in the back office.

Retailers can configure access for each specific user and specify which actions require a manager’s approval, such as the application of a manual discount or deletion of a line or a ticket. These approvals are stored in the back office at the ticket level, thereby ensuring end-to-end traceability. So your POS software can be set up so that items can only be deleted with approval by a manager.

Spot discrepancies faster

You can also control cash differences during all your opening and closing activities in each terminal, with automated notifications sent to managers in case of discrepancies. A “blind” cash-out process will make is so that employees cash out without knowing the exact amount they are expected to return, making it harder for them to adjust for exact discrepancies.

Besides being able to see the status of all your stores and terminals in real time from the back office, the POS can also safeguard all deposits and withdrawals with reason codes for each entry. Real-time inventory visibility can also be used to verify sales.

Include fraud protection in your POS investment

Integrated retail POS systems now include built-in and user-friendly mechanisms for fraud detection and prevention, which can help reduce shrink from theft and fraud significantly.

Solutions like Openbravo can protect critical point-of-sale activities like returns or cash movements with a comprehensive set of security and fraud control capabilities. Irrespective of the number of stores and terminals you have, Openbravo allows you to adapt as new technologies gain popularity, increase operational control and prevent fraud at the point of sale.

For more information about the security features of the Openbravo retail POS solution, click here.