Business Email Compromise (BEC) menace continues to haunt companies across the globe. BECs affect organizations of all sizes, with cybercriminals using email to impersonate company officials, partners or contacts who then trick unsuspecting employees into paying fraudulent invoices or sending money to attackers or asking employees to share passport data. As cyber attacks continue to go up in frequency and sophistication, organizations need to arm themselves with a strong defense system. A powerful weapon on the defense against BEC is Mimecast – a highly comprehensive email security platform that shields the end user from phishing, spoofing and other email aligned threats.
In this piece, we talk about the best ways to prevent Business Email Compromise at your business and provide You with step to use actionable steps and how Mimecast can be aid you to fortify your organization. Once you have these practices down pat, you can reduce the chances of BEC attacks and protect your organization’s data and funds.
What’s So Special about Business Email Compromise (BEC)?
BEC (Business Email Compromise) is a form of cybercrime which uses email fraud to target businesses that often work with foreign suppliers and/or perform wire transfer payments. These typically involve duping employees into wiring money, providing sensitive information or taking other actions that would be advantageous to the attackers. The most common type of BEC is an email impersonation scam in which cyber criminals are pretending to be someone trusted—like a company’s CEO or another high-ranking employee—emailing somebody to get manipulative access to someone’s personal information.
BEC assaults are advanced and may be challenging to spot. They are frequently preceded by extensive reconnaissance of the target organization, and include activities such as the collection of information on the organization’s internal processes, its financial transactions, and its personnel. Indeed, BEC is one of the most perilous and expensive forms of cybercrime, costing organizations hundreds of millions of dollars per year.
For victim organisation, impact of having a successful BEC attack can be disruptive enough to lead to financial loss or tarnishing of reputation. So that’s why it is so important for businesses to be proactively defending themselves against this kind of threat.
1. Implement Multi-Layered Email Security Solutions
One of the most effective ways to defend against BEC attacks is by deploying a multi-layered email security solution, such as Mimecast. Mimecast provides advanced features such as email filtering, real-time threat intelligence, and robust anti-phishing protections. These features help to identify malicious emails before they reach your inbox and minimize the chances of a successful attack.
A multi-layered approach to email security involves combining several different technologies and strategies to create overlapping defenses. Mimecast offers the following layers of protection:
- Email Authentication: Mimecast uses email authentication protocols like DMARC, DKIM, and SPF to verify the sender’s identity and prevent email spoofing. By authenticating emails, Mimecast ensures that emails appearing to come from legitimate sources are actually from trusted senders.
- Content Filtering and Malware Scanning: Mimecast’s content filtering and malware scanning capabilities detect suspicious attachments and embedded links within emails. This helps identify phishing attempts and malicious payloads, which are common tools in BEC attacks.
- Threat Intelligence: Mimecast leverages real-time threat intelligence to stay updated on the latest tactics used by cybercriminals. By constantly updating its databases and scanning email traffic for emerging threats, Mimecast ensures that your organization stays one step ahead of attackers.
2. Train Employees to Recognize and Respond to Phishing Attempts
Human error is one of the leading causes of BEC attacks. Attackers often rely on employees to fall for phishing emails that appear legitimate at first glance. To prevent this, organizations must invest in employee training and awareness programs.
Training should focus on teaching employees how to spot phishing emails, recognize suspicious attachments or links, and understand the proper procedures for reporting potential threats. Mimecast provides ongoing training and simulated phishing attacks to test employee vigilance and improve their ability to identify and respond to threats.
Key aspects of employee training include:
- Identifying Red Flags: Teach employees to look for warning signs in emails, such as unsolicited requests for wire transfers, unusual sender addresses, and generic greetings like “Dear Customer.”
- Verification Protocols: Encourage employees to always verify email requests—especially those involving financial transactions—via a separate communication channel, such as a phone call.
- Reporting Suspicious Emails: Make sure employees know how to report suspicious emails to your IT or security team. Mimecast simplifies this process by integrating reporting tools directly into the email interface.
3. Establish Strong Authentication and Access Control Measures
BEC attacks are often successful because attackers can impersonate a trusted individual by hijacking their email account. To prevent this, businesses must establish strong authentication and access control measures to protect their email accounts from unauthorized access.
One of the most effective ways to secure email accounts is by implementing Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). MFA requires users to provide multiple forms of verification—such as a password and a one-time code sent to their mobile device—before they can access their email accounts. This adds an additional layer of security and makes it much more difficult for attackers to gain unauthorized access, even if they have stolen login credentials.
Mimecast supports MFA and can be integrated with your existing identity and access management systems to enforce strong authentication policies across your organization. Additionally, Mimecast provides tools for monitoring suspicious login activity and alerting security teams when unauthorized access attempts are detected.
4. Regularly Review and Update Internal Policies and Procedures
To mitigate the risk of BEC, organizations must have clear internal policies and procedures for handling sensitive information, financial transactions, and communication protocols. These policies should be reviewed regularly to ensure that they remain relevant and effective.
Key elements of an effective internal policy include:
- Verification of Financial Requests: Establish a formal process for verifying financial transactions, such as wire transfers or changes in vendor payment details. This process should include confirmation through a secondary communication channel (e.g., phone calls or video calls) before any action is taken.
- Limiting Access to Sensitive Information: Restrict access to sensitive data and financial resources to only those employees who need it to perform their job functions. Regularly audit and update user permissions to ensure that only authorized individuals can access critical systems and data.
- Incident Response Plan: Develop and maintain a comprehensive incident response plan that outlines the steps employees should take if they suspect they have been targeted by a BEC attack. The plan should include procedures for reporting, containing, and recovering from an attack.
Mimecast can help enforce these policies by enabling security filters that block suspicious emails and prevent unauthorized communication channels from bypassing security protocols. Mimecast’s auditing and reporting features allow you to track and monitor email activity, ensuring compliance with internal policies and identifying any potential weaknesses in your security posture.
5. Monitor and Analyze Email Traffic for Anomalies
Another key strategy for preventing BEC is to regularly monitor and analyze email traffic for unusual patterns or anomalies. Attackers often use specific tactics to bypass traditional email security defenses, such as crafting emails that closely mimic legitimate communications or targeting specific individuals within the organization.
By analyzing email traffic and identifying anomalies, organizations can detect potential BEC attacks before they cause damage. Mimecast offers email traffic analysis and reporting tools that can help organizations track unusual behaviors, such as a sudden spike in financial-related emails or a high volume of emails sent to external accounts.
Additionally, Mimecast’s threat detection capabilities use machine learning and artificial intelligence to identify new and evolving attack techniques. By leveraging these advanced tools, organizations can proactively identify and block BEC attacks before they affect operations.
6. Ensure Continuous System and Software Updates
Cybercriminals often exploit vulnerabilities in outdated software and systems to carry out BEC attacks. Therefore, it’s essential for organizations to keep their systems up to date with the latest security patches and software updates. This includes both the email systems and any associated applications that handle sensitive data.
Mimecast helps ensure that your email security system remains up to date by providing automatic updates and maintenance to its platform. This ensures that your organization is always protected against the latest threats without requiring manual intervention. Regular system updates, combined with the proactive email security features provided by Mimecast, help create a robust defense against BEC.
Conclusion
Business Email Compromise is a serious and growing threat to organizations worldwide. However, by adopting a comprehensive email security strategy and leveraging tools like Mimecast, businesses can significantly reduce their risk of falling victim to these attacks. By implementing multi-layered email security, training employees, enforcing strong access controls, and regularly reviewing internal policies, organizations can create a secure email environment that protects both their data and finances.
As cybercriminals continue to evolve their tactics, it’s important for businesses to remain vigilant and proactive. Mimecast provides the tools and expertise needed to defend against BEC and other email-based threats, giving organizations the confidence to operate securely in today’s digital landscape.
