Business email compromise protection: a practical guide for UK SMEs

Business email compromise protection isn’t a fanciful IT problem reserved for banks and international firms. It is a plain and persistent risk that knocks on the doors of UK companies of 10–200 staff every week. When an email pretending to be a supplier, director or HMRC lands in a finance inbox, the consequences are straightforward: money out, deadlines missed and credibility dented.

Why it matters for your business

Small and medium firms rely on trust. Suppliers expect to be paid on time, payroll must run and board members need to be confident that instructions are genuine. A successful email scam can cost more than the immediate theft — lost supplier discounts, emergency bank charges, wasted staff hours, and the awkward conversations with customers and auditors. For many businesses I’ve worked with across the UK, sorting a compromised payment eats into the same week you’d planned for growth.

How these scams typically play out (without the tech waffle)

There are a few common scripts fraudsters use, and understanding them helps you design practical defences:

• Invoice fraud — a supplier’s invoice is intercepted or impersonated and bank details are changed. A single altered payment can be hard to reverse.
• CEO or finance team impersonation — an urgent payment is requested, often out of hours, with pressure to act fast.
• Account takeover — credentials are phished and the attacker sends believable emails from an internal account.

Notice the pattern: these scams rely on habit, pressure and a moment’s inattention. They exploit the way your people actually work, not some obscure technical flaw.

Practical protections that actually work

You don’t need a whole security operations centre to tighten up. Focus on process, people and a few sensible technical controls that reduce risk without getting in the way of doing business.

1. Make payments a two-person job

Require two approvals for any new supplier or for changes to bank details. It slows a rogue payment and creates a paper trail that’s useful if you need to explain decisions to your board or insurer.

2. Verify changes offline

If a supplier emails new bank details, pick up the phone to a known number (not the one on the email) and confirm. A short call takes minutes and saves days of hassle.

3. Tighten access to accounts

Limit who can authorise payments and who can update supplier records. If everyone can change a supplier’s details because they’re ‘helpful’, you’ve made fraud easy.

4. Use multi-factor authentication (MFA)

MFA adds a second hurdle for account takeover. It’s not infallible, but it significantly reduces the chance an attacker slips in on stolen credentials.

5. Teach staff to spot social engineering

Short, regular reminders work better than one annual lecture. Use real-world examples relevant to your sector — payroll spoofing, director impersonation and invoice changes — and make it part of line manager conversations.

6. Keep an eye on payment practices

Look for unusual behaviour: last-minute urgent transfers, requests outside normal working hours, or multiple small transfers that add up. Your finance team’s local knowledge and sense of rhythm are powerful defences.

For firms wanting a straightforward checklist to tighten controls without disrupting operations, there are clear cyber fundamentals worth reviewing; our cyber security guidance explains these in plain terms alongside the business benefits.

What to do if you suspect compromise

Act quickly and keep calm. Steps to consider:

• Stop further payments where possible — contact your bank immediately and ask them to flag the account.
• Change passwords and review recent sent emails from affected accounts.
• Preserve evidence — emails, timestamps and approvals — so you can show regulators or insurers what happened.
• Inform the board and your insurers; being transparent helps limit reputational damage.

In many cases the bank can freeze funds if alerted fast enough. That’s why having a clear incident path and knowing who to call matters as much as any technical control.

How to prioritise actions on a budget

For businesses with stretched resources, prioritise steps that reduce the biggest risks with the least friction:

• Start with processes (two approvals, phone verification) — these cost nothing but discipline.
• Add MFA and restrict administrative privileges — modest technical changes that yield big returns.
• Invest in short, practical training for staff and managers — not a day-long course, but scenario-based reminders they’ll remember.

I’ve seen firms in Manchester and the Home Counties turn a simple verification policy into an immediate reduction in payment errors. It doesn’t require a tech overhaul—just leadership and consistency.

When to bring in external help

If you’re uncertain about account access, suspect a wider breach or have complex banking arrangements, getting expert assistance makes sense. A short review can often identify the one or two controls that will give you the biggest return in time saved and risk reduced. Choose advisors who explain the business impact in plain English and who have experience with UK banking and regulation rather than abstract technical credentials.

FAQ

What is business email compromise protection and why do I need it?

It’s a mix of processes, user behaviour and basic technical measures designed to stop fraudsters impersonating people by email. You need it because it’s one of the most direct ways attackers turn an email into lost cash, missed deadlines and damaged reputation.

Can staff training really make a difference?

Yes. Training that focuses on real scenarios, repeated in short bursts, changes behaviour. The aim is to make staff pause and verify before acting, particularly on payment instructions and supplier changes.

Will technical fixes slow down legitimate work?

Good controls are designed to reduce risk with minimal disruption. A well-implemented MFA, clear approval processes and simple verification steps usually add a minute or two but save days of recovery time when something goes wrong.

How quickly should we act after spotting a suspicious email?

Immediately. Contact your bank, change affected passwords, and preserve evidence. The faster you act, the better the chance of recovering funds and limiting damage.

Conclusion

Business email compromise protection isn’t about tech for tech’s sake. It’s about protecting cashflow, reputation and the time of your people. Focus on sensible processes, a bit of technical hardening and repeatable staff behaviours. Make verification routine, not an afterthought.

If you want to reduce the time spent chasing errors, protect cashflow and keep your firm’s credibility intact, start with the simple changes above — they save money, cut stress and give you back the calm you need to grow.