In Houston, Kids’ Meals Inc. focuses on ending childhood hunger for preschoolers in need.
That mission recently expanded as Kids’ Meals partnered with Regions Bank by hosting dozens of local nonprofits for a live seminar on fraud protection. Without safeguards, nonprofits can fall victim to scams that threaten their ability to help those in need.
“We’ve found the best system is not only when your bank, your credit card company or your investment firm is looking out for you,” said Caroline Vérot Moore, Regions Commercial Banking leader and Greater Houston market executive. “The best system is when you join us in taking an active role in recognizing suspicious behavior and keeping your accounts secure.”
The best system is when you join us in taking an active role in recognizing suspicious behavior and keeping your accounts secure.
Caroline Vérot Moore, Regions Commercial Banking leader and Greater Houston market executive
Led by Jeff Taylor, head of Commercial Fraud Forensics at Regions, and Heather Hughes, vice president of Engagement Management with CYPHER Global Emergency Response, the nonprofits learned about some of the biggest threats in 2025 and beyond during an insightful, interactive, 45-minute seminar.
Topics and best practices included:
- Payment fraud and control: A threat to all businesses and nonprofits. In 2024, 79 percent of companies reported becoming victims of fraud, with losses reaching a record $16.6 billion.
- Check fraud: Criminals use altered, counterfeit and forged checks to steal from active accounts. Taylor and Hughes suggested converting to digital payment channels.
- Ransomware: Fraudsters gain control of systems and demand payment to restore access. Taylor and Hughes outlined the anatomy of a ransomware attack and steps to take if victimized.
- Business email compromise: Awareness efforts have reduced victimization from 76 percent in 2020 to 63 percent in 2024. Recognizing how criminals target executive, employee and vendor emails remains key.
- Emerging trends: Taylor and Hughes highlighted growing threats, including trusted partner/imposter scams and AI-generated scams. Recognition is the first step.
“Everyone’s a target,” said Cesar Guerra, Regions Commercial Banking relationship manager, during closing remarks. “If there’s money involved, there are fraudsters out there trying to take that money in harmful ways.”
Beth Harp, CEO of Kids’ Meals Inc., concluded the day with a tour of the nonprofit’s facility, which was made possible by Regions Banks’ New Market Tax Credits team. Harp praised Kids’ Meals’ relationship with Regions and the proactive effort to help protect others from fraud.
“I am so grateful that Regions Bank has reached out today to over 54 nonprofits in our city to help them be armed with information about fraud prevention,” Harp said.
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The information presented is general in nature and should not be considered, legal, accounting or tax advice. Regions reminds its customers that they should be vigilant about fraud and security and that they are responsible for taking action to protect their computer systems. Fraud prevention requires a continuous review of your policies and practices, as the threat evolves daily. There is no guarantee that all fraudulent transactions will be prevented or that related financial losses will not occur. Visit regions.com/STOPFRAUD or speak with your Banker for further information on how you can help prevent fraud.