Business Email Compromise (BEC)

Business Email Compromise (BEC) cybercrime is growing in popularity…and complexity. INKY stops these hard-to-detect attacks from wreaking havoc on your organization.

Request a Demo

What is Business Email Compromise?

Business Email Compromise (BEC) is a term that covers a set of behaviors having to do with how criminals impersonate a trusted figure or institution, gain access to an organization’s email system, target an individual with access to important assets (money, intellectual property), study their habits, style, and social graph, and, finally, fool that individual into compromising the organization (divulging secrets, sending money).

Speak with a Rep

Why should you be concerned?

BEC is a concern for everyone since any organization can be subject to a successful BEC attack. BEC methods are well understood by phishers, BEC tools are readily available on the darknet, and the risk-reward equation is favorable to phishers. To them, the cost of a campaign failure is close to zero, the risk is low because they can launch an attack without exposing themselves personally, and the potential payout is high. The FBI reports that victim’s losses due to cybercrime in 2020 totaled $4.2 billion. Read The Heavy Toll of Phishing in 2020 - What the FBI Results Show to learn more about this growing threat facing businesses.

How does INKY protect against BEC attacks?

INKY’s approach to anti-phishing technology stops BEC attacks in their tracks. Immediately after installation, INKY begins to track who sends an email to whom, establishing a social graph. And not just who is sending, but what their attributes are.

Learn about INKY's technology

INKY is always learning, always monitoring, and knows your users

Through a technique called stylometry, INKY establishes a profile for what an email from a particular sender should look like (e.g., their usual signoff, types of punctuation typically used, primary location, email platform and device type, etc). INKY then uses cluster analysis to decide if the set of attributes of any incoming email fits with the known sender profile. If the metrics show that the style is too far out of line with the sender profile, INKY warns the recipient with a color-coded banner.

Request a Demo

: Business Email Compromise (BEC) is a sophisticated form of email phishing for the purposes of financial fraud. With this type of cybercrime, the hacker impersonates a high-level executive in order to trick a targeted subordinate employee into parting with company funds – usually in the form of transferring money or paying a fictitious invoice.
: The answer is simple. Business Email Compromise (BEC) has the potential to generate large amounts of money in a short amount of time. In 2020, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center received more than 19,000 reports of BEC, totaling more than $1.8 billion in losses.¹
¹Source: https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2020_IC3Report.pdf
: Not only have the number of reported incidents risen over the years, but cybercriminals are becoming smarter in their endeavors. With the rise of social media, hackers take advantage of personal data to help them form relationships or build trust with intended victims. In the corporate world, the personal data gleaned from LinkedIn or company websites helps ensure their attempts at Business Email Compromise (BEC) appear more legitimate. To make matters worse, cybercriminals are forming cybergangs in order to devise their most sophisticated schemes. Cybergangs may be made up of lawyers, accountants, bankers, and other professionals who know the ins and outs of corporate money transfers. Some cybergangs have even been known follow the online presence of their intended CEO victims for months at a time in order to learn as much as possible about their clients, partners, and even their habits.¹

¹Source: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/opinions/cyber-gangs-smarter/
: When to comes to stopping Business Email Compromise (BEC), the first line of defense should be partnering with a strong email security service. INKY delivers the industry’s leading anti-phishing software, which is your best defense in the fight against imposter emails and CEO fraud. Unlike most anti-phishing software, INKY doesn’t rely on examining URLs and sender addresses to stop phishing emails. INKY’s brand forgery detection software uses Computer Vision to detect company logos and determine from whom the email pretends to originate.

For those who don’t have email security software, keep in mind that you shouldn’t rely on email alone, especially when it comes to big, suspicious, or out-of-character transactions. Walk over to your CEO office and discuss the request face-to-face. If you’re worried about looking silly, just imagine how you’ll look if something goes wrong. The simple mention of potential cybercrime―or the suggestion of an email security solution―should make any CEO grateful to have a conscientious employee.

Ready to see how INKY is the smartest investment you'll make in email security?

Learn More

Products

Featured Resource

Annual Report - Volume, Impact, Variety, and Sophistication of Phishing Attacks on the Rise

By Use Case

By Industries

By Platform

Education