A Model for Prevention and Detection of Criminal Activity Impacting Small Business‪.‬

ABSTRACT According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the annual cost of business crime activity to the U.S. economy is $652 billion. Additional costs of litigation and security measures suggest the many forms of business crime significantly impact business. While FBI data does not separate small businesses from large corporations, it appears that small business ventures will be susceptible to criminal activity. In fact, the United States Chamber of Commerce reported that business ventures of less than $5 million in sales will be 35 times more likely victims of business crime than larger firms. In addition, 30 percent of small business failures resulted from internal crime and employee dishonesty (U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 1995).