Business email compromise (BEC) Problem in 2021

January 19, 2021

6 Min Read

Security analysis and predictions for 2021 show that there will be dramatic increases in the number of phishing attacks against cloud-based email. Risk management and security leaders must ensure their solutions stay up-to-date for this changing landscape to protect against cyber attacks. EasyDMARC stays ahead of the game to protect your domain against business email compromise (BEC) by providing industry-leading outgoing security. Here’s what you need to know about business email compromise, email security predictions of 2021 and how EasyDMARC can help.

Security Analysis and Predictions For 2021

According to Gartner’s security analysis and predictions report for 2021, cloud office systems from Google and Microsoft continue to grow. Forcing risk management and security leaders to evaluate their services and products to ensure they are up-to-date. In fact, approximately 71% of companies are using cloud or hybrid-cloud email.

The report stated that there is an increase in account takeover and email impersonation attempts, resulting in a direct financial loss for many companies. These security breaches also cause users to lose trust in companies associated with attacks and deception, which can affect their bottom line.

As many companies are working from home remotely during the pandemic and relying on email more than ever before, security becomes increasingly important to protect against cyber theft and BEC.

One survey found that 65% of companies based in the United States fell victim to impersonation and email phishing attacks in 2020 alone.
According to a 2020 Verizon Data Breach report, approximately 22% of breaches included social engineering and approximately 96% of these situations were derived from email.
Also, 22% of breaches were due to human failure errors. In other words, someone in your company could accidentally be tricked into sending sensitive data to the wrong person.

Business email compromise statistics

Business email compromise (BEC) continues to grow. Research shows that payroll diversion scams were responsible for $8 million in 2019 alone. These attacks use email spoofing that appears to come from legitimate companies as a direct result of their takeover attempts.

According to the 2021 security predictions, risk management leaders need to invest in anti-phishing technology that can detect BEC and account takeover attempts. BEC protection should detect communication patterns and conversation-style attacks, and use computer vision when reviewing suspect URLs.

Employing Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance, or DMARC is a great way to combat business email compromise.

How EasyDMARC Protects Against BEC?

So, how do you stop phishing attacks on your company and protect your data in 2021? You have to deploy email authentication with DMARC, DKIM, SPF to improve outgoing email security and protect your domain and data.

Outbound email security features are critical for intellectual property protection and regulatory compliance such as:

Payment Card Industry [PCI DSS]
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act [HIPAA]

DMARC has been the gold standard for protecting domains for many years now. However, many companies shy away from it because of the complexity of its nature and concerns that emails will not be delivered as intended. It is hard and risky to deploy.

DMARC is an email authentication protocol that secures business domains and stop phishing attacks. It uses a combination of DKIM and SPF email authentication techniques that are usually already installed on most domains.

These protocols ensure that only authorized emails make it to your inbox. They also stop others from sending emails from your domain.

Here’s how DMARC works:

A DMARC policy is enabled on a domain’s DNS records. This should be done by a professional to make sure it’s set up correctly. You can check your record DMARC record by EasyDMARC’s DMARC lookup tool.
When an email comes in on the receiver side, the receiver’s email servers use DNS lookup to check the DMARC record of the sender domain. Then, the incoming server checks SPF, DKIM alignment to be sure it’s not fraudulent.
During this time, the server checks for three things. First, it makes sure the DKIM signature is valid. Next, it makes sure that the message was sent from IP addresses or services that were allowed in the SPF records. Lastly, it checks that the headers have proper domain alignment.
The server applies the DMARC records to accept, reject, or quarantine the message. These settings are set up during step one when the DMARC record is enabled on a DNS.
The receiving mail sender reports the outcome of the email to the authorized user. Domain users can check their DNS records and reports to make sure no emails are missed. You can do this with EasyDMARC’s tools.

Business email compromise (BEC) and DMARC

Without DMARC, emails that are sent from your domain will enter your recipient’s inbox without any security checks. Enabling DMARC allows the recipient’s mail transfer agent (MTA) to look up the DMARC records of the domain name as a verification check process. If the records match up, then the email is delivered. If not, the email is either quarantined or rejected.

By setting up DMARC records, you prevent cyberattacks from using your domain to send emails on your behalf. You also improve email deliverability, allowing business partners and customers a chance to respond to your emails quicker.

However, DMARC deployment requires Cybersecurity specialists, which are hard to find. The deployment process is time-consuming and risky if done incorrectly as valid outgoing emails will be rejected.

Why Choose EasyDMARC?

DMARC might seem complex, especially to those who aren’t familiar with the process of domain security. For this reason, it’s a good idea to allow a professional company to install and manage all of your DMARC records.

EasyDMARC customer reviews show that we provide the best service for email authentication deployment to protect against BEC. Our company is staffed with certified professionals who stay one step ahead of cyber and phishing attacks, which are expected to rise in 2021.

Opting for EasyDMARC takes the guesswork out of enabling and managing DMARC records so you can focus on keeping business running smoothly. EasyDMARC will prevent hackers from the following:

Spoofing emails containing money transfers and other sensitive data
Impersonating senior executives as well as other employees of power who hand decisions in your company
Sending fake invoices to your clients
Spreading ransomware and overtaking your domain
Pretending to be customer support in an attempt to steal confidential information from your clients or partners.

Additionally, EasyDMARC provides several free tools on the website to help you manage your domain and protect against BEC, such as SPF record lookup and SPF record generator as well as DKIM record lookup and DKIM record generator. For more information about how EasyDMARC can protect your business in 2021 to prevent BEC when stakes are high, contact us today.