HJB Forensics

Small business fraud is more common than you think. I share real cases, red flags & tips to help owners stay protected. CFE | HJB Forensics

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

🚨 Fraud Friday 🚨
Only 4% of small businesses fully recover their losses after occupational fraud.
4%.
Let that sink in for a moment.
That means 96 out of every 100 small business owners who experience fraud —
Never get their money back.
Not most of it.
Not half of it.
Not even a fraction of it.
The Brooklyn daycare — $2.75 million — gone.
The physician office — $928,988 — gone.
The Canton financial controller — $598,000 — gone.
The Waynesboro bookkeeper — $158,110 — gone.
Prevention is not an expense.
It is the only investment that actually protects everything else.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#FraudFriday #OccupationalFraud #FraudPrevention #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #SBDC #WillsPointTX

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

The Fraud Triangle is not just a theory.
It is the story behind every case we have shared this month:
🔴 The Brooklyn daycare — $2.75 million
🔴 The physician office — $928,988
🔴 The Canton financial controller — $598,000
🔴 The Waynesboro bookkeeper — $158,110
🔴 The Bullard construction company — $67,000
Every single one had all three corners present.
Which corner exists in your business right now?

— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#FraudTriangle #CFE #OccupationalFraud #FraudPrevention #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #WillsPointTX #VanZandtCounty #SBDC #ACFE

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

🧵 CFE Thursday — The Fraud Triangle 🧵
In 12 years of fraud examination there is one concept that explains virtually every single case I have ever seen.
It is called the Fraud Triangle.
And once you understand it —
You will never look at your business the same way again.
👇 Thread
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#FraudTriangle #CFE #OccupationalFraud #FraudPrevention #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #EastTexas #ETX #TexasBusiness #SBDC

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

Here is why the Fraud Triangle matters for YOUR business:
You cannot control pressure.
You cannot control rationalization.
But you can absolutely control opportunity.
✅ Separate financial duties
✅ Review bank statements personally
✅ Implement dual approval on payments
✅ Conduct surprise audits
✅ Limit accounting system access
✅ Require mandatory vacation
Every one of these controls eliminates opportunity.
And without opportunity —
The triangle collapses.

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

💡 Midday Fraud Prevention Tip — Wednesday Case Breakdown Edition
We talk a lot about bookkeepers and financial controllers stealing from small businesses.
But here is a fraud method most small business owners have never considered:
Expense Reimbursement Fraud.
Here is how it works:
🔴 Employee submits receipts for personal expenses as business expenses
🔴 Employee inflates legitimate business expenses before submitting
🔴 Employee submits the same receipt multiple times
🔴 Employee creates completely fictitious expenses with altered receipts
It starts small.
A tank of gas here.
A meal there.
A hotel stay that never happened.
Then it grows.
The ACFE reports that expense reimbursement fraud causes a median loss of $40,000 per scheme.
In a small business — that is payroll.
That is equipment.
That is your profit margin for the year.
💡 Three controls that stop expense fraud immediately:
✅ Require original receipts for every reimbursement request
✅ YOU personally approve every expense over a set threshold
✅ Audit expense reports randomly and without warning
The moment employees know someone is actually looking —
The fraud stops.
Because fraud thrives in the dark.
Turn the lights on.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#OccupationalFraud #FraudPrevention #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #ExpenseFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #WillsPointTX #VanZandtCounty #SBDC #SmallBizTips #WednesdayWisdom

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

Another Monday in the books. 💪
To every small business owner who showed up today —
When the alarm went off.
When the emails were already piling up.
When the problems did not wait for you to finish your coffee.
You showed up anyway.
That is not ordinary.
That is the small business owner DNA.
And everything you are building deserves to be protected from the threats most owners never see coming.
So tonight — know these numbers:
📊 What fraud is doing to small businesses right now:
🔴 Small businesses are defrauded out of an estimated $50 billion annually in the United States alone
🔴 1 in 5 small businesses will experience occupational fraud at some point
🔴 The longer fraud goes undetected the more devastating the loss — schemes lasting more than 5 years cause median losses of $850,000
🔴 Owners and executives who commit fraud steal twice as much as regular employees — with a median loss of $337,000 per case
🔴 Businesses with fewer than 100 employees have the least anti fraud controls in place of any organization size
🔴 The most common fraud scheme in small businesses is corruption — followed closely by billing fraud and expense reimbursement schemes
🔴 Small businesses that implement even basic internal controls reduce their fraud losses by up to 54%
That last stat is the one that matters most tonight.
54%.
More than half your fraud risk eliminated by basic controls that cost nothing to implement.
You worked too hard today to lose it to something preventable.
Follow @HJBForensics — we give you the knowledge to protect every single thing you built today.
Rest well. Back at it tomorrow. 👊
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#MondayMotivation #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #WillsPointTX #VanZandtCounty #SBDC #MondayGrind #SmallBizStats

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

To every small business owner still up late tonight —
We see you.
Running the numbers.
Answering emails.
Planning tomorrow.
Doing what nobody else is willing to do.
That is the small business owner life.
And it is worth protecting.
This week @HJBForensics has covered:
🔴 Fraud myths that could cost you everything
🔴 Financial red flags hiding in your accounts right now
🔴 Real cases from across the country
🔴 Prevention tips you can implement tomorrow morning
Because everything you are grinding for tonight deserves to be protected.
Follow @HJBForensics if you have not already.
Fraud education. Every single day.
Now put the phone down and get some rest. 😄
You have a business to run tomorrow. 💪
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX

🇺🇸⚽ One more thing before you sleep —
Tomorrow Team USA takes the pitch in the 2026 World Cup.
The same grit that keeps you up late building your business is the same spirit wearing that jersey tomorrow.
Let’s go USA! 🏆🇺🇸
Get some rest — and wake up ready to cheer.
#GoUSA #WorldCup2026 #USMNT #BelieveUSA #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #FraudPrevention #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #WillsPointTX #NightOwl #HustleAndGrind

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

A guilty plea. A nonprofit victim. A reminder that fraud does not discriminate.
Nonprofits are among the most vulnerable organizations to occupational fraud.
Why?
🔴 High trust environments
🔴 Minimal financial oversight
🔴 Limited internal controls
🔴 Heavy reliance on volunteers and trusted insiders
It does not matter who you are or who you know.
When controls are weak — opportunity exists.
And opportunity is all a fraudster needs.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#OccupationalFraud #NonprofitFraud #FraudPrevention #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #SBDC

[Ceej @Mushka12345]

Wife of ex-Michigan House Speaker pleads guilty to felony embezzlement charge https://t.co/nUajE6wF7Z

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

💡 Quick Fraud Prevention Tip for Small Business Owners:
Set a dollar threshold that requires YOUR personal approval on every payment.
Example:
✅ Any payment over $500 requires owner sign off
✅ Any new vendor requires owner verification
✅ Any wire transfer requires dual approval
This one control alone would have stopped dozens of the cases we have highlighted this week.
It costs nothing to implement.
Do it today.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #SBDC #SmallBizTips #WillsPointTX

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

🚨 Fraud Myth Monday 🚨
Myth: “I would know if someone was stealing from me.”
Reality: The average small business fraud goes undetected for 12 months.
You would not know.
Neither did the physician who lost $928,988.
Neither did the daycare that lost $2.75 million.
Neither did the construction company that lost $67,000.
Fraud is designed to be invisible.
That is the whole point.
Follow @HJBForensics — we help you see what fraudsters hope you never will.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#FraudMyth #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #SBDC

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

🇺🇸 And one more thing —
Let’s go USA! 🏆⚽
The US World Cup team is representing all of us on the world stage this summer.
Same grit. Same determination. Same refusal to back down.
Sound familiar?
That is the small business owner spirit right there.
Let’s go USA! 🇺🇸⚽🏆
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #WillsPointTX #SaturdayVibes #WeekendMotivation #FraudPrevention #USAWorldCup #WorldCup2026 #USMNT #BelieveUSA 🇺🇸

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

The person most likely to steal from your small business is not a stranger.
It is not a hacker.
It is not a shoplifter.
It is someone you hired.
Someone you trained.
Someone you trusted with your keys, your accounts, and your livelihood.
Someone sitting at a desk in your building right now.
The ACFE reports that the average small business fraud goes undetected for 12 months.
12 months of theft before anyone notices.
That ends when you know what to look for.
Follow @HJBForensics — we post daily fraud education built specifically for small business owners who refuse to become the next case study.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #SBDC #WillsPointTX

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

🚨 Fraud Friday 🚨
Before you head into the weekend — one question:
Do you know exactly what happened in your business financially this week?
✅ Every payment that went out ✅ Every deposit that came in ✅ Every vendor that was paid ✅ Every card transaction that was made
If you are relying entirely on someone else to answer those questions —
That is the gap fraudsters live in.
Have a safe weekend. 👊
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#FraudFriday #SmallBusiness #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TylerTX #LongviewTX #WillsPointTX #VanZandtCounty #TexasBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

A Brooklyn daycare director. 3 years. $2.75 million stolen.
How did she spend it?
🔴 $350,000 on professional wrestling event tickets
🔴 Hundreds of thousands on luxury goods
🔴 Food delivery and ride sharing on the daycare’s dime
Meanwhile children’s services suffered.
She hid it by deleting and altering the accounting records.
Sound familiar?
This is why someone other than your bookkeeper should control your accounting system access.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#OccupationalFraud #FraudPrevention #SmallBusiness #Embezzlement #SmallBusinessOwner #WireFraud #EastTexas #ETX #TexasBusiness #SBDC

[Insider Threat Defense Group @InsiderThreatDG]

Daycare Director Pleads Guilty Stealing To $2.7 Million / Used Funds For Travel, Etc.
https://t.co/IF8yO2W0bS

#insider #threat #threats #risk #risks #insiderthreat #insiderthreats #management #mitigation #program #employee #news #incidents #steal #stealing #stole #theft

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

Most small business owners have never heard of a CFE.
Here is why that needs to change.
A Certified Fraud Examiner is trained in four critical areas:
🔹 Financial transactions and fraud schemes
🔹 Law and legal elements of fraud
🔹 Fraud investigation
🔹 Criminology and ethics
We do not just find fraud.
We find out how it happened — and how to make sure it never happens again.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#CFE #FraudExaminer #SmallBusiness #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #TexasBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #ACFE

[HJB Forensics @hjbforensics]

Small business owners — after reading today’s case breakdown ask yourself this:
If your bookkeeper or financial employee left tomorrow —
Would YOU know where to find everything?
Bank statements. Vendor list. Reconciliation records. Payment approvals.
If the answer is no — that is a vulnerability.
Let us help you close it.
— @HJBForensics | CFE | Wills Point, TX
#SmallBusinessOwner #FraudPrevention #OccupationalFraud #EastTexas #ETX #NETx #TexasBusiness #TylerTX #LongviewTX #SBDC #WillsPointTX