MailSafi Glossary of Terms

Business Email Compromise (BEC)

A type of email-based cyberattack designed to gain access to critical business information or extract money from its victims. The attacker hacks into a corporate email account and masquerades as the real owner of the account with the intent to defraud the company, its customers, partners, suppliers and/or employees into sending sensitive data or money to the attacker’s account.

Cybercriminals send email that appears to be coming from a member of your trusted network such as your manager, CFO, CEO, business partner or someone you trust. The attacker attempts to compromise these email accounts through phishing. Once compromised, the attackers use the unauthorized access to obtain information about trusted contacts, steal and send out sensitive information, attempt to redirect wire payments or use the account to facilitate further cybercrime. Business Email Compromise has the potential to cause a company to lose millions of dollars. Read more about Business Email Compromise.