A white-collar crime is an umbrella term for a nonviolent offense that someone commits to gain some personal advantage, generally more money. Anyone who works for a business has the potential to commit a white-collar crime, whether they work for a small company or a larger, more well-known company.
Here are a few of the more common white-collar crimes in Indiana.
Embezzlement
Embezzlement involves taking money or other items meant for a business and using them as your own. People who commit embezzlement are often those who are in charge of keeping track of a company’s financial statements. This is because these employees can more easily hide what they are doing. Some signs that an employer may have an employee embezzling funds include missing paperwork and observing someone suddenly spending more time at work than usual.
Identity theft
Many employees have access to customers’ personal information, and some use this opportunity to commit identity theft. In general, most people commit identity theft for monetary gain, but others may do it to get back at a person or simply for the thrill of the crime.
Fraud
Fraud in business includes various ways of misrepresenting a company. For example, an accountant may make false claims about the financial performance of a company, while someone in sales and marketing may falsely advertise a product as being able to do something that it cannot.
By being aware of some of the more common white-collar crimes in Indiana, employers can take steps to prevent those crimes from happening at their place of business.