Learn how scammers pose as a supplier or boss to push you into changing where a payment goes, the warning signs to watch for, and the simple check-first habit that keeps the money safe.
Never change where a payment goes just because an email tells you to.
Last reviewed 2026-06-17 by Grayson Dodson. General guidance, not professional security or legal advice.
I can spot when an email is pushing me to change a payment, and check it the right way before I touch anything.
You'll be able to tell when an email about a payment or a supplier is pushing you to rush, and you'll have a simple habit to check it first before you change a single thing.
This is a scam where someone pretends to be a supplier, your boss, or a coworker so they can get a real payment sent to their own account instead. There's usually no virus to catch. The scammer just sends a believable email asking you to add a new supplier, change a bank account, or release a payment, and hopes a normal-looking request slips through.
The trick is to slip into a payment you were already expecting. Scammers learn how your workplace pays its suppliers, then time their email to line up with a real invoice or a supplier you deal with often. They might fake the sender's email address, use one that's a near-perfect copy of the real one, or send from a real account they've broken into, so the email looks familiar while it quietly points the money at a new account.
Slow down any time a request would change where money goes or who gets paid. Watch for a new or changed bank account, a switch to a different account at the last minute, a rush or a 'keep this quiet', a sender's address that's slightly off from the usual one, a push to skip the normal sign-off, and pressure to act before you've had a chance to check. Any one of these is reason enough to pause and make a call.
Never change a supplier, a payment, or a bank account just because an email pushes you to. Confirm it a different way: call the supplier or the person asking on a number you already have, never the phone number or email in the message itself. Then put the change through the usual sign-off where you work, and let the right person approve it before anything is updated.
An email from a supplier you know says their bank changed and asks you to update the payment before today's invoice goes out. Instead of changing it, you call the supplier on a number you already have, ask the person who handles your accounts whether the change is real, and put it through the usual sign-off. It turns out the email was a scam, and that one phone call kept the payment safe.
Practice lets you tell everyday supplier requests from the ones that are really scams, and rehearse the check-first habit without touching a real account or payment.
Write a short note for yourself: what makes you stop and check, which trusted contact you call to confirm a change, and who needs to sign off before anything is updated. Leave out any real supplier names, account numbers, or bank details.
After you've confirmed the change a different way and put it through the usual sign-off. A bank-account change is only safe once you've confirmed it with a contact you already trust and put it through the usual sign-off, not just because the email said so.
Call the supplier on a number you already have, not one from the email. Checking a different way means using a contact you already trust, because the phone number or email in a scam message just leads back to the scammer.
A push to change a bank account fast and skip the usual sign-off. A rush, a change to where money goes, and a push to skip the usual sign-off all at once is a classic scam, and worth stopping for.
Pause, confirm the change by calling the supplier on a number you already have, and put it through the usual sign-off before you update anything. A bank-account change with the clock ticking is the heart of this scam; checking a different way and putting it through the usual sign-off keeps the money safe.
Stop and check with the leader yourself, using a way you already know to reach them, then follow the normal steps to set up a supplier and get sign-off before any payment. A rush, a 'keep this quiet', and a push to skip the usual sign-off are signs someone is pretending to be the boss; checking with them a way you already trust, and following the normal steps, stops the loss.
A supplier you genuinely work with emails to say their bank details have changed, and the invoice is due. This is the most expensive scam that reaches an ordinary inbox.
Do the hands-on version of this lesson, then create a free account to save your progress. Finish a whole track and you earn a shareable certificate you can add to a résumé or job application. No payment, no catch.
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