New ‘check cooking’ scam turns 1 payment into many withdrawals from your account: Houston woman lost $24K after single mailbox drop. Protect yourself

Here's what to know about this new form of check fraud, as well as how you can protect yourself against it.

What is check cooking?

Check cooking is a form of check fraud where criminals get ahold of one of your banking information or checks, then use that information to make multiple check copies that they can then cash (5). Check washing is generally a physical process, while check cooking is a digital one — bad actors only need a picture of your check to cook it.

Even if you haven't experienced check fraud yet, that doesn't mean you're safe. In 2021, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (6) received over 350,000 suspicious activity reports about potential check fraud. In 2022, that number had increased to over 680,000. As check-cooking tools become better and more accessible, check fraud numbers go up.

One major way check cookers get access to checks is mail theft; if you put a check in your mailbox or a drop-off box, thieves can steal it and make copies before the check gets to where it's going (6). Once they have a digital copy of your check, they can sell it to other bad actors to make copies in turn.

How to keep your money safe

The best way to avoid check fraud is to use electronic forms of payment instead, especially if you'd have to send a check through the mail. But if that's not an option, there are still some things you can do to mitigate your risk.

If you're mailing a check, make sure to drop your check off as close as possible to when it will be picked up by your mailperson. That won't guarantee that your check stays safe, but it reduces the amount of time a third party has to steal it.