Vendor email compromise is a variation of business email compromise where fraudsters hack business email accounts of reputable vendors to place large orders of products with their suppliers or to issue fake invoices.
Where the supplier ships the products ordered prior to receipt of payment, they are left with a financial loss as the payment is then not made by the fraudster.
The fraudsters may issue fake invoices for payments that are actually due – but they have changed the bank account details on the invoice to an account controlled by the fraudsters.
- Requests from vendors for large shipments, particularly for the supply of electronics products
- Notification of a change in payment details with a request that payments should be directed to a new account, or
- Invoices that may look legitimate but where the bank account details have been changed.