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Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses

Stop fraud emptying your business — staff theft, fake alerts and the controls that block them.

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About this course

Learn how Nigerian small businesses actually lose money to fraud — insider theft, fake transfer alerts and POS reversal tricks, cheque and supplier scams, phishing and account takeover — and the simple internal controls that stop each one. You'll set up separation of duties, daily cash reconciliation, supervised POS, supplier and customer checks, secured accounts, and a clear plan for when fraud happens. You finish with a complete fraud-risk and controls plan plus a one-page staff cash-handling SOP you can hand to your team tomorrow.

The biggest threat to your business is rarely the armed robber at night — it's the quiet leak: the fake alert you didn't confirm, the cashier skimming every sale, the supplier who vanished with your deposit. This course plugs those leaks with simple habits, not expensive software.

What you'll learn

Course syllabus — 7 lessons

  1. How small businesses really lose money to fraud12 min
  2. Confirm the money landed — fake alerts, POS reversals & cheques15 min
  3. Insider theft — separation of duties & daily reconciliation15 min
  4. POS, cash handling & supervising the front line14 min
  5. Suppliers, big customers & the scams that target businesses14 min
  6. Securing your business accounts — phishing, takeover & access13 min
  7. When fraud happens — evidence, bank, police, EFCC & your plan14 min

Your project

Build a Fraud-Risk + Controls Plan and a Staff Cash-Handling SOP

A single shareable link (Google Doc or similar) or pasted text containing a fraud-risk and controls plan with five clearly labelled sections: (1) a short business context, (2) the top 5 fraud risks across insiders/customers/suppliers with naira impact, (3) the specific control(s) that block each risk, (4) a one-page staff cash-handling SOP in plain language, and (5) an 'if fraud happens' response section (evidence, bank, EFCC/Police, platform, insider handling).

Certificates on Skillnaija are earned, not issued for attendance: you submit this project, it is graded against a rubric, and passing issues a certificate anyone can verify.

Frequently asked questions

Is Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses free?

Yes. Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses is completely free on Skillnaija. You need a free account to open the lessons, and there is no charge for the course, the project, or the certificate.

How long does Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses take to complete?

5 weeks · ~4 hrs/week. There are 7 lessons, about 2 hours of material in total. You learn at your own pace and your progress is saved.

Do I need any experience to start Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses?

Beginner-friendly. You can start from scratch — no prior experience is assumed.

What will I learn in Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses?

You will build practical skills in Spotting the common fraud threats to a Nigerian small business, Confirming transfers actually landed before releasing goods, Simple internal controls — separation of duties, approvals, daily reconciliation, Supervised POS and catching reversal and fake-alert tricks, Verifying suppliers and large customers before you pay or deliver, Securing business accounts — 2FA, access control, dedicated devices, Responding to fraud — evidence, bank, police and EFCC. Every lesson is written for a Nigerian context, with examples drawn from how the work is actually done and paid for here.

Do I get a certificate for Fraud Prevention for Small Businesses?

Yes, but it has to be earned. You complete the course project — Build a Fraud-Risk + Controls Plan and a Staff Cash-Handling SOP and submit it for grading. Passing the project issues a verifiable certificate; finishing the lessons alone does not.

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