Check Fraud Is Increasing. Here’s How to Protect Your Money.

Writing a personal check is among the most basic ways to pay the bills. It is also becoming riskier.

Paper checks are on the decline, but are still widely used. Americans sent out 11.2 billion checks in 2021, down 7.2% from 2018, according to the Federal Reserve. Checks remain a common method to make payments for rent, utilities, charitable donations, taxes and fees.

The risks of writing a check, however, are heightened as a result of higher levels of check fraud. More scammers are targeting mailboxes to snatch checks and...