Blank Check Printing Software

Are pre-printed checks hindering the visibility efforts of your business? Do you want your checks to reflect your brand’s personality?

If you nodded yes to these questions, you should add blank check printing software to your inventory. When you have a blank check, you can add your business logo, colours, design, and personal message. This enhances visibility and brand recognition. 

However, you have to be careful when using the software yourself. You will have to buy a specialized blank stock paper, adhere to security protocols, and ensure compliance. This is why we suggest using a print and mail check API. It will automate the check writing, printing, and mailing, which will reduce the need for resources, prevent mistakes and ensure security. In this blog, we will cover the basics of blank check printing software, its features, and the best practices to follow. 

Key Takeaways

• Blank check printing software is used to bring blank checks with no information on them. This gives customers the freedom to add details of their choice.
• Printing blank checks is a safer option than pre-designed checks. Additionally, you can customize blank checks to use them as marketing tools.
• You should be meticulous in your search for blank check printing software. Make sure it has features like cloud functionality, scalability, integration, and more.
• Actively incorporate best practices in your check printing activities to ensure accuracy, security, and prevent the possibility of fraud.
• With PostGrid’s print and mail check API, you can design, print, and mail blank as well as pre-printed checks in a timely and secure manner.

Safe

When you carry a signed check or a chequebook, you invite criminals who can easily commit fraud. It is one of the most common reasons for financial losses. As per a Global Financial Crime Report by Nasdaq, there has been a loss of $21 billion in 2023 due to check fraud. 

Switching to blank check stock would be a wise decision. Since there is no information printed on it, you do not have to worry about keeping it under lock and key. 

Flexible

There can be a situation where you have to change your business’s or a client’s account details. Blank checks can seamlessly accommodate any changes that you want to make.

Moreover, since you can customize the details on a blank check, they can be used to integrate marketing into everyday transactions. So every time you send a personalized check, you are enhancing your brand visibility.  

Also Read: Alternatives to Paper Checks for Digital Payments

Finding the right software can easily become a daunting task if you don’t know what features to look for. Mentioned below are some of the must-have characteristics of a blank check program.

Cloud Printing Functionality

It enables communication with the printer through online services or third-party providers. It gives the ease of printing blank checks from home or office, in a secure manner. Moreover, with a cloud blank check-making program, you don’t have to manage servers and infrastructure, which will reduce IT costs.

Scalability

As your business grows, you will need software that can handle the surging volume, without compromising on the performance. Look for the one that can efficiently manage the demands of business checks, whether it is a few hundred, or thousands. 

Furthermore, if you plan to onboard new employees in the future, your software should be able to support users with multiple roles and permissions. This will help with adjusting access according to the role and ensuring compliance with internal protocols.

Compliance

While writing a check,  you will add sensitive information like the payee’s account information, and your signature through the system. If an unauthorized person accesses the software and prints a check, they can easily misuse it. This is why ensure that the software you buy adheres to leading industry standards to ensure data security and integrity. 

One such industry standard that your blank check printing must be compliant with is SOC-II. Short for Service Organization Control Type 2, it is a framework designed to guide service organizations to prevent any confidential and sensitive information from unauthorized access, breach, and other vulnerabilities. 

What makes compliance important is the fact that non-compliance costs $4005,116 in revenue loss. Hence, when you invest in compliant check printing software, you save significant money. 

Security

Data confidentiality and protection of sensitive information should be your priority. Look for the following security features to use the blank check software free from any worry.

1. Encryption technology: It involves encoding the data to make it unreadable. Only the person with the decryption key can access it. This helps maintain the confidentiality of information and ensures secure digital transmission.
2. Multi-factor authentication: It adds an extra layer of security by asking the user to verify themselves in two different steps. Take, for instance, it will ask for a fingerprint after a password. This will ensure critical functions like printing checks and approving payments are protected.
3. Role-based action control(RBAC): This involves assigning roles to the people and giving relevant access. For example, a check writer will have different access from a check approver. This will safeguard the private data and reduce the risk of malicious alterations.

These characteristics will ensure that only authorized personnel can access check printing, leaving no room for security concerns.

Customization

Look for a blank check printing program that offers customization. Your check writer should be able to add, edit, and remove fields as per the business’s requirements. It should also offer design flexibility so that you can customize the layout, and add the company logo or any other design elements.

Integration

Smooth integration with the existing accounting and financial software is necessary to ensure a quick and easy flow of data. It should enable direct fetching of data from the software to the blank check. This will speed up the check processing without leaving any scope for inaccuracies.

Also Read: How to Read a Canadian Cheque MICR?

Use High-Quality Check Paper

Only select blank check stock that has the following features.

1. Watermarks: It is an embedded design or image that is only visible when the check is held up to the light. It makes the check difficult to replicate using standard printing technology. 
2. Holograms: It is a 3D reflective image placed on the check’s face. It is made with foil that can not be removed or copied, making it challenging for criminals to reproduce the check. Moreover, it has a distinctive shine that gets lost when the check is copied, making the forgery identifiable.
3. Heat-reactive ink: This ink changes color or completely disappears when heat is applied to the check. Replicating it would require maintaining precise conditions, which can be tough.
4. Chemical reactivity: This feature makes a check sensitive to specific chemicals and substances such as solvents and bleaches. The change in colour or the revealed specific character will confirm that the check has been tampered with. The need for the special chemical and the complexities involved in alteration make it almost impossible for fraudsters to recreate fraudulent checks.
5. Microprinting: This includes adding small texts or patterns to check. They might look like a simple line to the naked eye. However, they reveal intricate designs under a magnifying glass. The details of microprint are hard to reproduce with the typical photocopying or scanning technologies.

Having these elements will act as a deterrent and protect your checks from the prying eyes of counterfeiters.

Incorporate Security Measures

If you plan to print your own checks using check printing software, integrate the following security measures. 

1. Limited accessibility: Don’t let just anybody print the checks. Restrict access to check printing programs and printers by enabling password protection. 
2. Secure software: Only use reputable check printing software that offers security features like encryption to prevent unauthorized access.
3. Monitor and track: Have a tracking system in place that measures check printing activities. Keep tabs on the check printing process. Maintain a log of the purpose of each online check and who printed them.
4. Timely update: Make it a habit to periodically update the check printing software with the latest security patches to prevent any issues.

Educate and Train

Ensure that the employees involved in the check printing activities know the importance of security. Conduct periodic training sessions to keep them up to date with the latest security threats and ways to avoid them. 

Maintain a Blank Check Schedule

A blank check schedule is a timetable that you can create to list when and how the blank checks will be issued and used. Aside from effective check management, this practice will reduce the risk of misuse.

Blank check printing software is a powerful tool to strengthen your brand recognition and spread brand visibility. However, there are security issues with doing it in-house. PostGrid Check API would be a better alternative. You get automation, customization, integrations, top-notch security, and a host of other features. It will ensure that the professional checks are accurately created, printed, and mailed safely.

Why worry about the complex check printing tasks, when PostGrid can write, print, and mail checks on your behalf? Request a demo to learn how you can start.