Your business is never 100 percent safe from cyber-attacks and fraud, and you must always be vigilant when it comes to using email and the Internet. Too many businesses of all sizes have experienced devastating loss and in extreme cases, have had to close their doors permanently due to the results of cyber-attacks. One form of these attacks is business email compromise (BEC.)
In 2019, 75 percent of businesses in the United States experienced BEC, and resulted in a total of $1.77 billion in losses. The total losses for 2020 will increase significantly based on the Anti-Phishing Work Group, Inc.’s trend report. In 2020, business email compromise attacks became more costly. The average wire transfer request per attack increased from $48,000 in the third quarter to $75,000 in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Here are 4 key actions you can take to protect your business:
- Verify the source of any email before clicking links or opening attachments.
- Train your employees about corporate account takeovers and the signs to look for.
- Dedicate one computer for online banking use only; no Internet browsing or checking email.
- Sign up for banking services that automatically detect and block checks and withdrawals coming from unauthorized sources.
Ask your bank to go through a multi-point security checklist to ensure you are protected from email compromise and more. If your bank doesn’t offer this, we can help. Fill out your information if you are interested in receiving access to a full webinar on cyber security best practices.