WHAT IS BUSINESS EMAIL COMPROMISE? The $2.7B Threat to Small Business
Business Email Compromise (BEC) cost organizations $2.7 billion in 2023. Learn how these sophisticated scams work and how to protect your small business.
What is Business Email Compromise?
The $2.7B threat to small business
2025-12-23
Last year, a nonprofit director in Ohio received an email from her organization's accountant requesting that she wire $47,000 to a new vendor. The email looked legitimate. It came from the accountant's name, referenced an ongoing project, and used the same friendly tone she'd seen in hundreds of previous messages.
She made the transfer. The money vanished.
The email wasn't from her accountant. It was a Business Email Compromise, and it's costing organizations like yours billions of dollars every year.
What exactly is Business Email Compromise?
Business Email Compromise (BEC) is a sophisticated scam where criminals impersonate trusted contacts to trick you into sending money or sensitive information. Unlike the obvious phishing emails promising lottery winnings or asking you to help a foreign prince, BEC attacks are targeted, researched, and disturbingly convincing.
The FBI calls it "one of the most financially damaging online crimes." In 2023 alone, BEC attacks caused $2.7 billion in reported losses and that's just what gets reported. The actual number is likely much higher.
Why small businesses are prime targets
Here's an uncomfortable truth: criminals have figured out that small businesses are often easier targets than large corporations.
You don't have a dedicated security team. Large companies employ entire departments to spot fraudulent emails. You're probably handling this yourself, between client calls and payroll.
Your relationships are personal. When "your accountant" emails asking for a quick wire transfer, you're not going to run it through a security committee. You trust the people you work with.
You're visible online. Your website lists your team. Your LinkedIn shows your vendors. Social media reveals your projects. Attackers use this information to craft emails that feel authentic.
The amounts are "reasonable." Criminals rarely ask for millions. They request amounts that seem normal for your business; $15,000 for a vendor payment, $8,000 for new equipment. Amounts you might approve without a second thought.
The five faces of BEC
BEC attacks typically fall into five categories:
CEO fraud: An attacker impersonates a company executive and emails an employee in finance, requesting an urgent wire transfer.
Account compromise: A criminal gains access to a real employee's email account and uses it to request payments from vendors or customers.
Vendor impersonation: Someone poses as a trusted supplier and sends a fake invoice with updated payment details; their own.
Attorney impersonation: A scammer pretends to be a lawyer handling a confidential matter, pressuring quick action and secrecy.
Data theft: Instead of requesting money, the attacker asks HR or finance for employee tax records, W-2s, or other sensitive information.
Red flags that should make you pause
Even well-crafted BEC emails often contain subtle warning signs:
Urgency without context. "I need this handled before I board my flight" or "This must be completed today, I'll explain later."
Requests for secrecy. "Keep this between us for now" or "Don't mention this to [other employee]."
Changes to payment details. Any request to update banking information or send money to a new account deserves verification.
Slight email variations. The email comes from john@company-inc.com instead of john@companyinc.com. Easy to miss at a glance.
Unusual communication patterns. Your vendor suddenly emails instead of calling. Your CEO's writing style seems slightly off.
What this costs beyond the wire transfer
When BEC succeeds, the financial loss is just the beginning.
Recovery is rare. Once money is wired, it typically moves through multiple accounts within hours. Recovery rates are dismally low.
Trust erodes. Clients may question whether their information is safe with you. Employees may blame themselves or each other.
Operations suffer. That $47,000 was earmarked for real expenses. Now you're scrambling to cover the gap.
The scammers come back. Organizations that fall for BEC once are often targeted again, sometimes by the same criminals who know the first attack worked.
Protecting your business
Prevention doesn't require a massive security budget. It requires awareness and verification processes:
Verify payment requests through a second channel. If you receive an email requesting a wire transfer, pick up the phone and call the person using a number you already have on file not one provided in the email.
Establish payment change protocols. Any request to change vendor banking information should trigger a verification process. No exceptions.
Check sender addresses carefully. Train yourself and your team to look at the actual email address, not just the display name.
Use email authentication tools. Technology exists to verify whether emails actually come from who they claim to be. Check your domain's vulnerability to email spoofing.
Create a culture of verification. Make it clear that verifying unusual requests is expected not a sign of distrust.
The bottom line
BEC works because it exploits trust and urgency, two things that make small businesses run. Attackers know you're busy. They know you work closely with your team and vendors. They use that against you.
The nonprofit director in Ohio? She's now an advocate for email security awareness. Her organization survived, but the lesson cost $47,000.
Your lesson doesn't have to cost anything.
Is your business email protected? Ṣọ Email Security analyzes incoming emails in real-time, detecting spoofed domains, compromised sender patterns, and BEC red flags before they reach your inbox.