Business Cybersecurity Basics: Protecting Your Company from Hackers

Alex Helfand, ENCE, Computer Forensic Specialist

As an executive, what keeps you up at night? Many leaders fret about revenue growth, client retention, and, increasingly, the possibility of fraud or cyberattacks. If you are worried about your business’s cybersecurity, you’re not alone: a recent survey (PDF) by the National Small Business Association (NSBA) shows that 94% of business owners are worried about this issue.

Unfortunately, these fears are not baseless. Nearly half of the survey respondents reported that their businesses were […]

October 25, 2013 Accounting, Forensic Accounting, Human Resources Read more...

Common Estate Planning Mistakes

Posting by Geoffrey D. Brown, CPA

October 21 – 27 is National Estate Planning Awareness Week, which is designed to raise awareness and provide education around this important financial issue. I’ve had the opportunity to help many families and family businesses preserve their legacies over the past thirty years, and, unfortunately, there are some common estate planning mistakes and misconceptions that seem to come up time and time again.

Think your assets are not significant enough to necessitate a plan? Think […]

October 24, 2013 Accounting, Tax, Wealth Management Read more...

SHUTDOWN TO DELAY START OF 2014 TAX SEASON

Scott Reddersen

As a result of the 16-day government shutdown, the IRS is already predicting a delayed start to the 2014 filing season. Citing a need to allow adequate time to program and test tax processing systems, the IRS is anticipating a delay ranging from one to two weeks. If that expectation stands, taxpayers will be able to begin filing their 2013 tax returns no earlier than January 28th, and no later than February 4th.

The delay will not postpone the deadline […]

October 24, 2013 Accounting, Tax Read more...

How do you capture or recover electronic evidence on computers and cell phones?

Natalie Burchfiel, CPA

New technologies mean evidence of fraud may be electronic, hidden and difficult to detect.  How do you capture or recover electronic evidence on computers and cell phones?

Obviously, an investigator can look at the files saved on a computer’s hard drive.  Despite a fraud perpetrator deleting files and emptying the recycling bin, however, most files are still located somewhere on the hard drive.  Using specially programmed computer forensic software, a trained computer forensic investigator can uncover these deleted […]

October 17, 2013 Accounting, Forensic Accounting Read more...

Growing Mervis Diamonds as I Stand on the Shoulders of Giants

In standard cocktail party conversation, people ask me repeatedly the same question: “What’s it like working with your family? I could never do it!” They continue to tell me that it’s an honorable thing to do, and give it the same sort of admiration that one would confer to a shoemaker who learned his craft from his father and the trade goes back generations in the family. The general notion I hear is that working with your family is […]

October 16, 2013 Accounting, Family Owned Businesses Read more...

Bond Beebe Employees Raise Money to Support Cancer Research

For the fourth consecutive year, Bond Beebe, a certified public accounting and advisory firm with offices in Bethesda, Maryland and Alexandria, Virginia, participated in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Walk which took place in Rockville, Maryland on October 12, 2012. Light the Night Walk is the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s annual fundraising event that pays tribute and brings hope to people battling cancer; the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) funds lifesaving research that has contributed to […]

October 16, 2013 Firm News & Events Read more...

DOL Concern Over Alternative Investments in Pension Plans

Larry Beebe, CPA

Utilizing alternative investments in employee benefit plans, particularly pension plans, is a common practice. However, as more and more plans have invested assets in these types of investments, the Department of Labor (DOL), in a recently-released audit report (PDF), is expressing some concerns about the use of alternative investments in pension plans.
What are Alternative Investments?
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants defines alternative investments as assets that are not listed on any exchanges or over-the-counter markets, or […]

October 10, 2013 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

Bond Beebe Professionals Author Second Edition of Payroll Auditing Guide

Bond Beebe, a certified public accounting and advisory firm, is pleased to announce that Lawrence R. Beebe, CPA, Firm Principal, and Philip Vivirito, Director of Payroll Audits, have completed the second edition of Payroll Auditing: A Guide for Multiemployer Plans. Published by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, Payroll Auditing provides industry best practices and insights on how to conduct payroll audits and manage payroll audit programs.

Originally published in 2008, Payroll Auditing helps benefit plan trustees fulfill their […]

October 9, 2013 Firm News & Events, Payroll Audit Read more...

Premarital Agreements: Protecting Family-Owned Business Assets

Posting by Geoffrey D. Brown, CPA, Principal

Last week, I had the pleasure of facilitating a webinar with Linda Ravdin, a knowledgeable family law attorney from law firm Pasternak & Fidis. While divorce is always a difficult subject, it can become particularly troublesome when there are concerns about protecting family-owned business assets. Through this webinar, Linda shared a number of insights and strategies that business owners can use to protect their business assets in the case of a divorce.

Properly protecting […]

October 7, 2013 Family Owned Businesses, Wealth Management Read more...

IRS 2014 Per Diem Rates

Brian Wynne, CPA

Before we dive in to the updated IRS per diem rates, it’s important to note how the
government shutdown is affecting IRS operations. While the IRS will not be conducting audits and refunds may be delayed, no deadlines have changed.  If your plan has a calendar year end and you are on extension for filing Forms 5500 and 8955-SSA, they are still due on October 15, 2013.  For more details regarding the effect of the shutdown on IRS […]

October 2, 2013 Accounting, Tax Read more...