My Account
In the Event of Fraud, is Your Business Prepared?
First Response
 | Act Quickly Immediately inform your bank about any suspected fraud. The shorter the time between a fraudulent transaction and its detection and reporting, the greater the chance of recovery. Remember, every minute counts. |
 | Alert Your Banks and Use the ‘F’ Word Be prepared to state that you suspect “fraud” and not “potential fraud” when notifying your bank. Confirm this in writing and be specific. |
 | Provide the Details Provide all fraudulent transaction and background details on the suspected fraud. Your bank will need clear information before they can act. Some jurisdictions may require additional actions, so ensure you are aware of local requirements in the areas your business operates. |
 | Provide Indemnity Be prepared to complete follow-up actions as required and provide your bank with indemnity documents to facilitate the bank-to-bank recall process. |
 | File a Police Report Obtain a copy of the report or take a crime reference number, as this may later be requested from the beneficiary bank(s). Depending on your jurisdiction, you may also be required to file a police report in both the remittance and ultimate beneficiary jurisdictions. |
Additional Incident Handling
Phase 1
 | Legal Counsel Consider engaging legal counsel to navigate the recovery of funds especially if the beneficiary bank is located outside of your home jurisdiction. |
 | Internal Resources Ensure your internal fraud/security resources are engaged as the subject matter experts. Implement a communications plan (both internal and external) so that key stakeholders are fully informed and remain vigilant. |
 | Review Transactions Independently review all recent transactions for other suspicious payments or unauthorized activity across your bank accounts. |
 | Investigate Initiate an internal investigation. Make sure to secure and retain any potential evidence. |
 | Forensic Analysis For business email compromise (BEC): -Alert all employees of the incident and activate your internal fraud/cybersecurity contingency plans. -Notify your suppliers/vendors about what has transpired and reconfirm the correct payment instructions. |
Phase 2
 | Review Conduct a full review of your internal controls and fraud prevention processes. Implement new measures where necessary. |
Post Fraud/Attack
 | Develop and Implement an Internal Fraud/Cybersecurity Response Plan Your plan should be documented and socialized with all employees, clearly defining roles and responsibilities. It should also include escalation points of contact and any information that should be communicated. This plan will detail how your organization’s response to a fraud incident will be managed. |
 | Develop Fraud Escalation Protocols Consider creating robust fraud escalation protocols, including a defined internal communications strategy, which is clearly documented and accessible to all relevant stakeholders. |
 | Staff Training Provide regular and updated fraud awareness trainings to ensure all employees are aware of current fraud trends, best practices, and current internal contingency and escalation protocols. |
 | Monitor Consistently monitor supplier/vendor relationships, other business partnerships, transaction activity, and internal procedures. |
