CEO fraud is one of the rising cyber security threats that businesses are faced with. This type of fraud is called a Business Email Compromise (BEC) incident because hackers usually first make contact with the victim via email. In it, the cyber thieves impersonate a high-level executive, such as the CEO of the company, to trick the individual into wiring funds to a fraudulent, overseas account. This type of theft often fools many employees since it looks legitimate on the surface.
The end result is that CEO fraud can cost a company millions if the hackers manage to execute the scam successfully. However, there’s some good news. There are ways businesses can prevent this type of scam from occurring in the first place. Here’s a look at what businesses can do to prevent CEO fraud scams from taking place:
Educate Employees About CEO Fraud
Since incidents of CEO fraud is on the rise, it helps to educate employees as to what CEO fraud actually looks like so they can avoid getting involved with the scam. This can be accomplished through security awareness training, which can help prevent incidents of fraud from occurring in the first place. Employees need to know what a typical fraudulent email looks like and also how to avoid taking part in the scam once the threat is identified. Increasing employee awareness and training them about all aspects of cyber security, not just CEO fraud, are important measures for guarding against cyber scams.
Implement Better Email Filtering
There are a few telltale signs that can show whether the email truly came from a C-level executive or if they came from a scammer. While employees can certainly be trained as to how to spot the difference themselves, it also helps to set up better email filtering so that employees may not even see the fraudulent emails. Scammers use tactics such as spoofing the company’s domain name, spelling the company’s domain name incorrectly, and placing the CEO’s name in the from line of the email even though the email didn’t originate from the company.
Develop Secure Wire Transfer Protocols
Wire transfers are a big part of CEO fraud scams since the hacker’s main goal in impersonating the c-level executive is to get the victim to wire transfer large amounts of funds to a bank account. Imagine if the employee believed the scammer and was about to transfer the requested money. Having stringent wire transfer protocols in place could further prevent the scam from being successfully executed. For example, if the policy states that wire transfers can only be made if the CEO or other executive approves it first, this could prevent the scammer from obtaining the money.
Are you concerned about cyber security threats such as CEO fraud but are unsure of where to start? Contact Roan Solutions for help creating a cyber security plan that can handle threats such as CEO fraud.
