Insights

How Solink’s Video Surveillance Platform Can Help Canadian Businesses Prevents Business Fraud and Counterfeit Bills

February 15, 2023
Caroline Leveillee is a multi-unit restaurant franchisee who previously worked in the franchisor head office. Like many business owners, she’s concerned about counterfeit bills entering her cash registers.

 

With an estimated $147 million of fraudulent American bills in circulation (US Secret Service), counterfeit bills are of concern for any cash-based business. Quick service restaurants and convenience stores are often the targets, where fake bills can be quickly swapped for legitimate currency. Canadian business owners are equally at risk, as counterfeit U.S. notes often appear north of the border where employees are less familiar with the bills and how to spot an American fake.

Just recently, Caroline spotted counterfeit bills in her till. Using Solink’s surveillance camera system, she was able to find evidence of the transactions, send the evidence to law enforcement and have the perpetrators arrested all within a matter of hours.

“I came into my store that day and noticed that we had two fake US 50 dollar bills. My first thought was to figure out when they were taken and who had taken them. I opened Solink and searched for cash payments with $50 bills and the two incidents came up right away. It looked like it was the same people and the same employee. Two patrons at two different times during the day using fake 50 dollar bills.”

“So I called the police. They came, I showed them the video, I sent them the video [link to share] and within an hour they caught and arrested the perpetrators. Finding the suspicious orders took me seconds – which is very nice. Previously just finding this footage would have taken hours”

“It’s straightforward, it’s easy, it’s simple. The cop called me later that day like ‘yep, we arrested them’.”

“The big thing here is how quick it was to find the evidence. I think it took me longer to log in than to find it – it was that fast.” Caroline attributes part of this speed to Solink’s smart filtering and reporting. “I’ve been notified or looked for other transactions in the past, and it’s always been easy.”

Discover how Solink can improve the operational efficiency of your restaurant.

In Summary: What you need to do

  1. Teach your employees how to spot counterfeit U.S. bills. Here is a great guide from Fit Small Business.
  2. When a counterfeit U.S. bill is found, use Solink’s pre-built report for U.S. currency.
  3. You will see the POS data and related surveillance video of all transactions that day where a U.S. currency was used.
  4. When you find the suspicious transaction, report the incident to law enforcement.
  5. The share video feature allows you to send a secure link of the video evidence to law enforcement over email.
 

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