Businesses around the country have seen an increase in the number of fraud and attempted fraud incidents in recent years. In 2022 alone, the FBI reported that Business Email Compromise fraud led to losses exceeding $2.7 billion1. No one is immune to this increase, and in fact businesses have been prime targets for fraudsters in recent years.
We take the security of our customers seriously and have several ways in which we help clients protect themselves from fraud attempts. A combination of financial fraud detection technology, Check and Positive Pay and dual controls for transfers, are just some of the ways to combat scammers. It’s critical, though, for businesses to remain vigilant.
Imagine this…
Imagine this situation: Sam works for a title company and is verifying mortgage information from a lending institution. He receives an email from a name he recognizes alerting him to a change in wire transfer routing information. When it’s time to transfer money to the institution, Sam remembers the email and makes sure it goes to the new account. Within a few days, everyone realizes the mistake. Sam had mistakenly sent the money to a fraudster, who tricked Sam into thinking they were his contact at the financial institution.
Sadly, this is not atypical and shows just how easy it can be to fall victim to fraud. In this scenario, Sam fell prey to two different types of scams: spoofing and wire fraud. The scammer used an email address that was very close to the real one, tricking Sam into thinking it was correct. Then Sam unknowingly believed the fraudster and wired the money to the wrong account. So how can you stay ahead of the fraudsters and better protect your company from these as well as other types of fraud?
Stay alert
- Don't take action on urgent emails until you ensure the sender and request is legitimate.
- Update software regularly and use email spam filters.
- Ensure that dual control is built into your payroll and accounting processes.
Check and ACH Positive Pay
- Reduces fraud by paying out only those checks or transactions that you designate or approve.
- Minimizes disruptions after an incident by preventing these transactions from clearing.
- Provides online accessibility to approve any anomalous transactions.
Educate Your Employees/Clients
- Personal email accounts are not secure and should not be used for sharing sensitive information.
- Share real world examples of attempted fraud and what some of the red flags look like.
- If wiring, provide clients with clear wire instructions, letting them know that they won't change and that they should call and verify any request prior to initiating a transfer.
And remember, Atlantic Union Bank will never call, email or text asking you for sensitive information like user names, passwords, one-time passcodes or account numbers.
For more information on Security and Fraud, please visit AtlanticUnionBank.com/SecurityCenter.
1Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Report 2022.
This material is provided solely for educational purposes and is not intended to constitute tax, legal or accounting advice, or a recommendation for any particular transaction.