Sophisticated cybercriminals use email scams and malware that gives them access to your internal systems so they can commit financial fraud. One common tactic is to send fake emails that convince an employee to immediately send an outgoing wire transfer at the urgent request of a company executive. In reality, the executive never requested the wire transfer and the thief steals the money from your business account.

Here are some tips to lower the risk of wire transfer fraud:

Establish a procedure. Develop a written policy specifying trusted staff authorized to initiate and approve wire transfers. Require confirmation of wire transfers by phone or email using verified contact information for those requesting a wire payment. 

Set up dual controls. Require one person to initiate a wire transfer and a different person to approve it.

Train your team. They are your first line of defense against fraud. Follow a regular schedule of in-person and online training. Remind them not to click links in suspicious emails or social media, or open or download attachments to emails from people they don’t know. 

Test your team. Send email “tests” to employees from your IT security team to evaluate if they can identify a potential scam. It’s a great coaching opportunity to develop their fraud detection skills.

Stay alert. Review all wire transfer requests and question unexpected requests or changes to payment amounts or methods. Make sure your employees know who to notify if they find suspicious activity.