Businesses Should Remain Aware of Payment Scams

Businesses Should Remain Aware of Payment Scams

In December of 2018, officials of Cabarrus County in North Carolina fell victim to scammers. County officials believed they had received an email from a contractor they hired to build a new high school, which claimed that the company had changed their bank account details.

The Cabarrus County staff followed protocol, requesting that forms and documentation were submitted to make the change. Nevertheless, Cabarrus County subsequently transferred $2,504,601 into a fraudulent bank account, a mistake that went undetected for several weeks. Although the bank was able to recoup a portion of the funds, about $1.7 million remained missing seven months later.

Payment scams like these are becoming increasingly more common, so businesses should be cautious when a supplier changes their bank account information.  Businesses should remember to always have vendors pre-authorized before making payments via electronic transfer, and should consider implementing internal processes to safeguard against potential payment scams.

Source: Bitdefender.com