Watch Out for Scams Targeting Businesses

Changes in workflow have created some new avenues for business email compromise. Scammers set traps to try to get employees to click on infected links, or worse, wire money under false pretenses. Some of the scams circulating now attempt to exploit the time-sensitive and high-pressure nature of B2B transactions.

• CEO scam: A spoofed email may appear to be from the CEO or another person of authority within the business. The email asks the recipient to wire money or transfer funds under the guise of an emergency.
• IT scams: Another scam involves fraudulent emails claiming to be from your information technology staff. They may direct employees to follow a link to a new teleconferencing system or download new software. Workers who are overwhelmed or stressed may click before thinking twice.
• Supplier scams: Businesses may receive emails and invoices from unfamiliar suppliers requesting payment for orders that don’t exist. Employees may be targeted with spoofed emails that appear to come from trusted vendors. Remind employees to use caution and follow best practices to make sure purchase orders and invoices match up.
• Loan program imposters: Watch out for fraudulent emails claiming to offer financial help from a government agency. They may ask for an upfront payment with a promise of free money or emergency loans from the government. If you have doubts about the authenticity of an email, double-check the address it was sent from. 

Robocalls are used to attempt to reach employees for a variety of criminal purposes. These robocalls may be selling bogus COVID-19 test kits and cleaning supplies. Or the message may claim that small businesses affected by COVID-19 need to provide more information so they can be properly listed on Google. If anyone at your business receives a call like this, hang up.

With more employees working from home since the pandemic started, there’s a greater risk for security vulnerabilities. A breakdown of cybersecurity protocols could inadvertently expose your business’s data to hackers. Most commonly, an employee’s computer can be hacked when they click on a link from a spoofed email or visit an unsafe website. From there, the computer may house ransomware, a type of malicious software that denies access to the computer’s data until a ransom is paid.

To help prevent computers from being hacked, all employees should be required to use strong passwords on all devices, have up-to-date security software and use an encrypted wireless network.

At Amegy Bank, we partner with you on a proactive approach to cybersecurity. We employ industry-standard security practices and quickly notify account holders of any suspicious activity. Learn more about our layered defense approach and more fraud-fighting tools.