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 the IT Lunchroom Editorial Team. 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.
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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