Watching Your Back: The Latest Scams Targeting Small Businesses
Scammers are getting more convincing. Here's how to protect your business, your customers, and your money.
Running a small business means dealing with customers, invoices, vendors, email, websites, payments, and countless online accounts every day. Unfortunately, scammers know this—and they're becoming increasingly creative about using familiar business names, realistic invoices, professional-looking emails, and even artificial intelligence to make fraudulent messages look legitimate.
The good news? You don't have to become a cybersecurity expert to protect yourself. A few simple habits can make it much harder for a scammer to fool you or your customers.
Fake Invoices and Payment Requests
One of the most common scams targeting businesses is the fake invoice.
A scammer may send an invoice for something your business never ordered, or impersonate a business you know. Even more concerning, scammers can sometimes impersonate your own business and send a fake invoice to one of your customers.
The invoice may include:
Your business name and logo
A familiar-looking invoice format
A realistic invoice number
A payment button or link
A deadline or sense of urgency
A payment request through a familiar service such as Stripe or another payment platform
The FTC specifically warned small businesses in 2026 that scammers send fake invoices for products or services the business never ordered, hoping someone will simply pay the bill.
Protect yourself
Never pay an unexpected invoice simply because it looks professional.
Verify:
Did you actually order the product or service?
Do you recognize the company?
Is the invoice consistent with your normal billing?
Is the payment information different from what you normally use?
Can you verify the request through a trusted phone number or website?
And if a customer tells you they received an unexpected invoice from your business, take it seriously. Save the message and report the fraudulent account or payment request.
Phishing Emails: Don't Take the Bait
Phishing is when someone sends a message designed to trick you into clicking a link, opening an attachment, providing information, or making a payment.
Phishing can arrive by:
Email
Text message
Social media
Fake website pop-ups
Direct messages
Even phone calls
A message may appear to come from your bank, a payment processor, a government agency, a vendor, a customer, or another business you recognize.
The FTC warns that phishing messages can lead to stolen passwords, identity theft, financial loss, and compromised accounts.
Watch for these warning signs:
Urgency:"Your account will be closed today."
Unexpected payment requests:"Your invoice is overdue. Pay immediately."
Suspicious links:"Click here to verify your account."
Requests for sensitive information:"Please confirm your password, Social Security number, banking information, or credit card."
Unexpected attachments:Especially invoices, documents, or ZIP files you weren't expecting.
When in doubt, don't click. Go directly to the company's official website or contact the person using information you already know is legitimate.
Business Email Impersonation
You don't necessarily have to lose control of your email account for someone to impersonate your business.
A scammer can create a look-alike email address using your business name.
For example, a legitimate business might use:
while a scammer creates:
The second address may look convincing enough that a customer doesn't notice the difference.
Scammers can also use email spoofing, which makes a message appear to come from an address it didn't actually originate from. The FTC warns that business email impersonation can damage a company's reputation while putting customers at risk.
Protect your customers
Make your payment process predictable.
Tell customers:
"If you receive an unexpected invoice or payment request from us, please contact us directly before making a payment."
It's also helpful to tell customers what email address or payment system you normally use.
Business Email Compromise
A more serious form of email fraud is known as Business Email Compromise (BEC).
In a BEC scam, criminals may impersonate a business owner, employee, vendor, or customer and attempt to convince someone to:
Transfer money
Change payment information
Pay an invoice
Send confidential information
Provide account credentials
The FBI considers BEC a significant business threat and recommends reporting suspected incidents to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).
One simple protection is extremely effective:
Never change payment instructions based solely on an email.
If a vendor suddenly says, "Please send future payments to this new bank account," verify the change by contacting the vendor through a trusted method.
Fake Copyright or Legal Demands
Another scam—or sometimes a legitimate-looking but disputed demand—can involve claims that your business is violating copyright, trademarks, licensing agreements, or other intellectual-property rights.
These messages often use intimidating language:
"You are in violation."
"Immediate payment required."
"Legal action will follow."
"Pay now to avoid further penalties."
Don't automatically pay because the message sounds official.
If you receive a copyright or licensing claim:
Determine who is making the claim.
Verify that the company or rights holder is legitimate.
Identify the specific image, content, or material involved.
Check your licenses, receipts, subscriptions, and permissions.
Ask for documentation supporting the claim.
Keep everything in writing.
A legitimate claim should still be supported by evidence.
An intimidating demand does not automatically mean you owe money.
Fake Government, Bank and Account-Verification Messages
Scammers frequently impersonate trusted organizations.
You might receive a message claiming to be from:
Your bank
The IRS
A government agency
A payment processor
Your website provider
Your domain registrar
A shipping company
A software subscription
A security service
The goal is often to get you to click a link and provide login or payment information.
The safest practice is simple:
Don't use the link in the message.
Instead, open your browser and go directly to the organization's official website.
AI-Powered Scams Are Making Impersonation More Convincing
Artificial intelligence is giving scammers new tools for creating convincing messages and impersonations.
AI can help criminals produce:
More professional-looking emails
Convincing business communications
Fake customer-service conversations
Voice impersonations
Highly realistic images
Personalized phishing messages
The FBI's latest Internet Crime Report shows that AI-related fraud is already producing significant financial losses.
That means good grammar is no longer a reliable indication that an email is legitimate. A scam message can be professionally written.
Instead, verify the request itself.
Text Message Scams and "Smishing"
Phishing isn't limited to email.
Smishing is phishing through text messages.
You may receive:
"Your package could not be delivered."
"Your bank account requires verification."
"Your payment failed."
"Your business listing needs to be renewed."
The message usually contains a link designed to get you to a fraudulent website.
Don't click unexpected links in text messages. If you think the message might be legitimate, open the company's official app or website yourself.
Fake Business Directory and Website Renewal Scams
Small businesses are also frequently approached by companies claiming that a business listing, domain, website service, or online advertising account needs to be renewed.
Some are legitimate solicitations; others are outright fraudulent.
Before paying, determine:
Who is contacting you?
Do you actually have an account with them?
Is the service necessary?
Is this your actual provider?
Did you request the service?
Don't assume that a professional-looking invoice means you have an existing obligation.
How to Protect Your Business
You don't need an expensive security system to develop better scam protection.
Start with these simple habits:
1. Use two-factor authentication
Turn on two-factor authentication (2FA) for email, banking, social media, website accounts, and other important services whenever available.
2. Keep your software updated
Updates often include security fixes.
3. Use strong, unique passwords
Don't reuse the same password across multiple business accounts.
4. Verify unexpected payment requests
If something seems unusual, stop and verify it using a trusted method.
5. Don't click first and investigate later
If an email contains a suspicious link, don't click it just to see where it goes.
6. Keep your business information organized
Know what customer information you have, where it is stored, and who has access to it. The FTC recommends taking stock of the personal information a business keeps, limiting what it retains, protecting what it does keep, and having a plan for responding to security incidents.
7. Protect your customers, too
If someone is impersonating your business, let affected customers know.
Give them one simple rule:
When in doubt, contact the business directly before paying or providing information.
A Simple Rule That Can Prevent Many Scams
When something unexpected arrives in your inbox, slow down.
Scammers want you to react quickly.
They create urgency:
Pay now.
Verify immediately.
Your account will be closed.
Legal action is pending.
Your invoice is overdue.
Instead, take a moment to verify.
Ask yourself:
Did I request this?
Do I recognize the sender?
Does the email address actually match?
Was I expecting this invoice?
Is the payment method normal?
Can I verify this independently?
If the answer to those questions isn't clear, don't click, don't pay, and don't provide information until you've verified the request.
Protect Your Business—and Your Reputation
Scammers aren't only trying to steal money from businesses. Sometimes they're trying to use your business's identity to fool your customers.
That's why protecting your business also means protecting the trust you've built with the people you serve.
Keep your accounts secure. Be careful about publicly displaying unnecessary personal information. Make your payment procedures clear. And teach your customers how to recognize suspicious requests that appear to come from your business.
You don't have to be paranoid.
You just have to watch your back.
If You Suspect a Scam
Don't delete the evidence immediately. Save the email, invoice, phone number, payment instructions, website address, and screenshots.
For suspected fraud, you can report it to the Federal Trade Commission and, when appropriate, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The FBI encourages people to report cyber-enabled fraud even when they aren't sure whether their situation qualifies.
When it comes to scams, a few extra minutes of caution can save you—or your customers—from a very expensive mistake.
Feel free to share this with your clients!
And also please remember to tell customers, and for any business conducted with Sarah Bryce Designs:
"If you receive an unexpected invoice, copyright demand, payment request, or other financial request connected to my work, contact me directly before paying anything."
Together we can stop scammers from hurting businesses and clients!
Contact Sarah for more tips and help. www.sarahbrycedesigns.com
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