For small businesses
Verify a vendor’s changed payment details
A familiar email conversation can carry unfamiliar payment instructions.
Treat changes as a separate decision
If an invoice, executive, or vendor asks for new payment details, pause the change. An existing email thread can be compromised.
Verify outside the message
Use a number from your own records to confirm the change. Where practical, require a second authorized person to approve a new payee or changed instructions. Do not treat a successful small test transfer as proof of ownership.
If the money went elsewhere
Contact your financial institution promptly and ask it to contact the receiving institution. Report online crime through IC3.gov and alert the genuine business contact. Preserve the original instructions.
Sources & further reading
- FBI · Business email compromise Government guidance
Reviewed October 27, 2026. Provider terms and support routes can change.