Friday is the day. The bounce? Is in your step. The caffeine? Can be found in your flask.
All in all, it’s shaping up to be another fantastic day. Until a client query arises, they question why they received a late payment notification when they sent the funds last week and just shot through the remittance. You quickly apologise for the mistake, but you login into your business’s Xero account to discover that the computer says no. Perplexed, you double-check the remittance details, and that’s the moment in time where the day took a nosedive.
It looks like we have a case of invoice fraud on our hands.
What is Invoice Fraud?
While we may waltz around life thinking we’re way too bright and far too tech-savvy to get caught by an internet scam, these scams are reaching a whole new level of sophistication. Invoice fraud is becoming more and more prevalent, and the stats are rather frightening.
In fact, some of the intercepted invoices are almost a carbon copy of the original, with only the bank accounts details undergoing a catastrophic alteration. It doesn’t end there; there are also fake supplier notifications in circulation where they claim their bank details have changed. These scams all leave the client or buyer believing they’ve paid their bills or invoices when the only bank account their money is hitting is that of a scammer.
While these funds may be lost forever, hope is not as there’s a solution at hand. When it comes to invoicing fraud, prevention is better than the cure, and that’s where our good friend eInvoicing comes into play.
What is eInvoicing?
eInvoicing, more formally known as Electronic invoicing, is the successor of emailed PDF invoices or links to online invoices. eInvoicing eliminates the opportunity of inception from scammers by taking a direct route from one accounting or payment system to the other. In doing so, it’s revolutionising the invoice game by allowing you to send and receive invoices to and from your clients securely.
The best part is eInvoicing is compatible with many accounting systems, so there’s no need to jump ship.
Beyond accounting compatibility and putting scammers out of business, eInvoicing has a plethora of other benefits like providing greater accuracy of invoice information and establishing a more efficient process. By automating the digital exchange of invoice information between buyers and suppliers, eInvoicing can free up more time for you and your team.
How do I set up eInvoincing?
Peppol framework is the standard for eInvoicing in Australia, and to help Australian businesses reap the benefits of eInvoicing, the ATO is currently operating the Australian Peppol Authority.
If your small business is currently utilising Xero, you can get eInvoicing up and running for your business here with Xero’s step-by-step rundown. For our business buddies using alternative accounting software (or those experiencing bumps on the road to invoice fraud prevention), Orbit is here to make it possible. We can also discover other ways to help keep your accounting secure, tactics to get paid faster, and opportunities to make your processes even more efficient.
These efforts can free up time for you and your team to chase all your bright ideas while allowing you to sit back and enjoy your Friday’s invoice fraud-free. So book a chat or get in touch, and let’s beat business burnout once and for all.
