FBI Sounds New Alarm Over Supplier Invoice Scams

The B2B invoice scam could be headed for your inbox. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the instances of B2B invoice scamming are on the increase, with a 270 percent spike in the crimes since last January.

In response, the FBI released a public service announcement late last week warning businesses of the scam, also known as the “Business Email Compromise” (BEC). Authorities believe the BEC has caused about $1.2 billion in damages for businesses between October 2013 and August 2015, reports said.

The FBI warns businesses that cybercriminals send a seemingly legitimate email pretending to be an international supplier seeking payment. Because the email does not appear suspicious and because foreign suppliers deal in foreign currencies, businesses are highly susceptible to the scheme.

Businesses have reported such scams using wire transfers and even paper checks to obtain the money.

Phishing scams have also led to a rise in BEC-related crimes, the FBI noted in its announcement, allowing hackers to obtain sensitive financial account information and passwords.

“The BEC scam continues to grow and evolve, and it targets businesses of all sizes,” the FBI warned. “The scam has been reported in all 50 states and in 79 countries. Fraudulent transfers have been reported going to 72 countries; however, the majority of the transfers are going to Asian banks located within China and Hong Kong.”

Authorities are advising business owners to implement robust email intrusion detection systems and for companies to register domain names that are similar to their own so scammers can’t use them. All supplier payment information should be verified, especially when that information changes, and the FBI said companies should implement a two-factor authentication process, meaning that all vendor payments should go through two different reviews by corporate employees.

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