Contents
Wire transfer fraud means tricking a company into sending money to a scammer’s account. The five most common scenarios are CEO fraud, fake supplier fraud, fake bank adviser fraud, phishing and internal fraud. You protect yourself by combining approval procedures, checks on bank details and staff awareness.
Key takeaways
- Every company is a target, whatever its size or sector.
- Most frauds play on urgency, authority and secrecy.
- Segregation of duties, call-back checks and payee verification stop the vast majority of attempts.
The 5 most common wire transfer frauds
1. CEO fraud
A scammer poses as the company’s chief executive, by email or phone, sometimes with a cloned voice. They ask a member of staff for an urgent, confidential transfer, citing an acquisition or a tax inspection, and forbid them from telling anyone.
2. Fake supplier fraud and bank detail changes
The fraudster impersonates a genuine supplier and announces a change of bank details. The invoices that follow, perfectly legitimate, are then paid into their account.
3. Fake bank adviser fraud
A fake adviser or bank technician calls about a “test”, a “security update” or a “suspicious transaction”, and gets a transfer approved or access codes handed over.
4. Phishing and malware
A booby-trapped email prompts someone to click a link or open an attachment. The fraudster harvests login credentials, or malware alters the payment files before they reach the bank.
5. Internal fraud
An employee changes a third party’s bank details, creates a fake supplier or diverts payments. It is all the harder to detect when the roles of data entry and approval are not kept separate.
| Fraud | Warning sign | Countermeasure |
|---|---|---|
| CEO fraud | Urgency, secrecy, unusual channel | Call the executive back on a known number |
| Fake supplier, bank detail change | New bank details announced by email, often abroad | Check with the supplier through another channel |
| Fake bank adviser | Request to approve a transfer or give codes by phone | Hang up and call your usual adviser back |
| Phishing, malware | Unexpected link or attachment, look-alike sender | IT security and awareness training |
| Internal fraud | Untraced changes to bank details | Segregation of duties and an audit trail |
How do you protect yourself against wire transfer fraud?
Secure your procedures
- Separate data entry from approval of payments, with dual signatures above a set threshold.
- Tightly control any change of bank details: a written request, a call-back to a number you already have and approval by a second person.
- Keep a list of authorised payees and block any payment to an account that is not on it.
- Use payee verification. Since October 2025, euro-area banks check that the payee’s name matches their IBAN before a SEPA transfer: never override a warning.
Secure your tools
- Sign every order electronically with the EBICS TS protocol: no payment goes out without the approval of an authorised person.
- Protect payment files between the ERP and the bank, where malware can tamper with them.
- Keep everything up to date: operating systems, antivirus and business software.
Train your teams
Accounting, treasury, purchasing and executive assistants are on the front line. Regular sessions built around real cases teach them to recognise the scenarios and to dare to check, even when an urgent request appears to come from the top.
Check every payment before it goes outThe E-Finances Anti-fraud solution verifies payees and blocks suspicious payments.
Discover the solutionWhat should you do if you fall victim to wire transfer fraud?
- Call your bank immediately to block the transfer or request a recall of the funds: the first few hours are decisive.
- Gather the evidence: emails, phone numbers, transfer orders, login logs.
- File a complaint with the police, the gendarmerie or the public prosecutor.
- Report the incident and get support through the Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr platform.
- Analyse the weakness and tighten the procedure concerned to prevent a repeat.
Good to know. If you realise an attempt is under way, do not hang up abruptly: note down as much as you can about the person you are talking to, as it will help the investigation.
Frequently asked questions about wire transfer fraud
What should you do after wire transfer fraud?
Contact your bank without delay to block or recall the funds, keep all the evidence, file a complaint and report the incident on Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr.
Will the bank refund a fraudulent transfer?
A transfer you ordered yourself, even under false pretences, is in principle treated as authorised, and a refund is not automatic. That is why it matters to react within the first few hours and to prevent fraud in the first place.
What controls should you put in place against wire transfer fraud?
Separation of data entry and approval, dual signatures above a threshold, a call-back for any change of bank details, a list of authorised payees, payee verification and electronic signature of orders.
- Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr — the French national support service for victims of cybercrime (in French)
- Banque de France — statistics and publications on corporate financing and payment times (in French)
Director of Sales at E-Finances, a French financial software publisher for more than 25 years.
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