Embezzlement can go from simple overloading of expense accounts to payments made to non- existent companies. Stock shortages increase in frequency or size. Employees refuse vacations or promotions. Business patterns change when a certain employee is absent. Customers complain about errors in monthly statements.
Employees seem sensitive to routine questions about procedures.
A cashier in a grocery store accidentally damages boxes and cans so she can buy them at reduced prices. A maintenance worker stashes calculators and typewriters in trash bins. A stock clerk saves discarded customer receipts and uses them to show that stolen goods were paid for. The best defense is frequent, thorough inventory control. Limit employees access to stock and inventory records.