Protecting Your Business from Business Email Compromise
Cybercriminals are getting smarter, and the emails they send are becoming harder to recognize as fraudulent. At Hogan Technology, we are using advanced email and account protection technology to help businesses defend against Business Email Compromise (BEC), phishing and other sophisticated cyberattacks.
For years, employees were taught to look for obvious warning signs in suspicious emails, such as misspelled words, poor grammar and unusual formatting. Unfortunately, those warning signs are becoming less reliable.
Today, cybercriminals can use artificial intelligence to create convincing messages in seconds. They can research a company, identify executives and vendors and imitate the way employees communicate. Some attackers even use AI-generated audio or video to impersonate trusted individuals.
The result is a new generation of cyberattacks that can be difficult to recognize, even for experienced employees.
What Is Business Email Compromise?
Business Email Compromise occurs when a cybercriminal impersonates someone an employee trusts, such as an executive, coworker, customer or vendor.
Sometimes the attacker creates a convincing fake email address. In more advanced cases, they gain access to a legitimate employee's email account.
Once inside, the attacker can study existing conversations, identify business relationships and wait for the right opportunity to insert themselves into a transaction.
They might request a change in payment instructions, redirect an invoice or send additional phishing messages from the compromised account. Because these messages appear to come from someone the recipient recognizes, they can be especially difficult to detect.
Why Traditional Email Security Is Not Enough
Email remains a common entry point for social engineering attacks. As phishing methods become more sophisticated, businesses need security that goes beyond identifying suspicious links, attachments or familiar scam language.
Our approach uses multiple layers of protection to help identify threats before they reach employees and detect suspicious activity if an account becomes compromised.
The first layer examines incoming email and the context surrounding it. Advanced security technology can evaluate whether a sender appears legitimate, whether a domain is impersonating a trusted business and whether the message resembles known phishing techniques.
Suspicious messages can then be blocked or quarantined before an employee has the opportunity to interact with them.
Protecting Microsoft 365 Accounts
Stopping malicious emails is important, but no security system can guarantee that every threat will be blocked.
That is why we also focus on identifying suspicious activity within Microsoft 365 accounts.
If an attacker successfully gains access to an employee's mailbox, they may attempt to maintain that access through unauthorized forwarding rules, stolen sessions or other changes that allow them to continue operating unnoticed.
Advanced account monitoring can help detect unusual login activity, suspicious mailbox behavior and other warning signs that the person accessing an account may not be the authorized employee.
This additional visibility is critical because a compromised account can quickly become a company-wide problem.
Responding Before the Damage Spreads
Detecting suspicious activity is only part of the solution. Businesses also need the ability to respond quickly when an account may have been compromised.
Depending on the security tools and configuration, automated responses can help:
- End unauthorized account sessions
- Disable methods attackers use to maintain access
- Remove malicious email forwarding rules
- Identify and retract phishing messages where supported
- Limit the spread of an attack to other employees
These measures can help contain a threat before it causes further damage.
A compromised employee account does not just put one person's email at risk. It can expose sensitive business information and create opportunities for attackers to target coworkers, customers and vendors.
Staying Ahead of Today's Cyberthreats
The goal is not to make employees afraid of email. It remains one of the most valuable communication tools businesses use every day.
The goal is to give employees the freedom to do their jobs while protecting the systems and information they depend on.
As Sean Hogan, President of Hogan Technology, puts it:
"Our job is to make sure our clients are not fighting today's attacks with yesterday's defenses."
Cybercriminals are already using AI to make their attacks more convincing. Businesses need to respond with stronger technology, better monitoring and a proactive approach to cybersecurity.
At Hogan Technology, we help businesses strengthen their email security, protect Microsoft 365 accounts and reduce the risks associated with increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks.
Is your business protected against today's email threats?
Complete the form below to connect with our team and learn how we can help strengthen your email and account security.