HOW TO STAY SAFE
Business Email Compromise
Business Email Compromise (BEC) is a sophisticated tactic where scammers impersonate high-ranking company officials or trusted partners through email or other messaging platforms to trick employees into making payments or sharing private and confidential business information.
Many employees with privileged access or hi-ranking positions are targeted by scammers impersonating senior executives - requiring swift action in a client/ customer related matter, or financially related error or incident.
A more 'everyday' example may include a request to change the banking details on an invoice when payment is scheduled to be made.
How To Spot It
These are the red flags you should look out for:
- Unsolicited contact. You receive an unexpected request to do something, perhaps from someone who is very senior.
- Irregular channels of contact. You may be contacted at irregular times via informal channels, and the requesting senior official is ‘out of the office’ or unable to reach their laptop or office within an acceptable time frame for the issue to be resolved.
- They pressure you to act fast. Scammers like to create a sense of urgency as this gives you less time to think and consider things thoroughly.
- There are last minute changes to payment details. Scammers email business customers claiming to have made an error on the invoice with regards to the banking details and provide the victim with a new invoice reflecting the 'correct' banking details for payment.
- The request is different to normal procedure. They ask you to do things differently than the normal process. The impersonator will also claim to accept accountability for any irregular protocol or process breach to facilitate the transaction since it’s a matter of great importance or urgency.
What To Do
There are steps you can take to empower yourself to fight back against scams:
- Verify: Trust your gut. If something feels off - double check directly with the relevant person to confirm, using the contact information you have on record.
- 4-Eye Principal: Legitimate organisations will NEVER override the security checks when making a payment irrespective of the urgency. At least 2 individuals (4-eye principal) will need to review and validate the request before it is processed.
- Be vigilant: Check that the email address is legitimate and the same as on your system. Do not click on any links or open any attachments. If the request is received via an unofficial channel, question its legitimacy.
- Implement robust cybersecurity practices: Use strong and unique passwords, do not use public Wi-Fi when banking or working with confidential information, and implement multi-factor authentication where possible.
- Report it: If you have been scammed, please report it immediately to the relevant organisation and/ or authorities, as well as the Yima reporting function below, or the Yima scams hotline.
Stop. Think. Verify. Don't get scammed!
HOW TO STAY SAFE
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