Louisiana Land Bank would like to remind you to remain vigilant and apply the appropriate safeguards to help prevent fraudsters from taking advantage of your organization.
According to a recent survey by the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP), 80% of organizations were targets of payments fraud activity in 2023 – an increase from 65% in 2022.
Source: AFP: 2024 Payments Fraud and Control Survey*
How it works
In impostor fraud, or business email compromise, a fraudster poses as a person (or entity) you know and trust. This could be an executive in your organization or a vendor.
Step 1. The fraudster gains access to your trusted contact’s email or IM (instant message) account. Or they may spoof the contact’s information.
Step 2. The fraudster impersonates your contact and sends you a request for a payment or a payment instruction change.
Keep in mind fraudsters may use phone, text, or other communication methods as well.
How to protect yourself
Never send funds or change payment instructions based on an email, IM, or any other single form of communication. Always verify payment-related requests and use a different communication method than the one the requestor used.
Verify email or IM instructions by making a phone call to the requestor using a phone number you already have on file for them. Don’t use contact information that is included with the request to ensure you don’t verify with the impostor inadvertently.
Implement dual custody to serve as a second chance to identify potential fraud. Verify before initiating and verify before approving – on separate devices.
Thank you for helping us prevent fraud. We appreciate your business.
*By selecting this link, you will be entering a website that Louisiana Land Bank does not control. Louisiana Land Bank has provided this link for your convenience but does not endorse it and is not responsible for the content, links, privacy policy, or security policy of this website.
