Eftsure Logo
Request a Demo
Vendor Verification

Anti-cybercrime strategy: Payment Fraud

Why finance leaders must lead the charge

Most organisations focus heavily on cybersecurity—protecting systems and data—but overlook a critical gap: cybercriminals aren't trying to steal your data, they're after your money. Traditional cybersecurity strategies don't focus on protecting the financial assets that criminals actually target, particularly in an era where artificial intelligence (AI) tools are lowering the barriers to cybercrime. Today, many scammers don’t even need technical skills and can rely on AI to help them socially engineer victims into making fraudulent payments.

This is why every organisation needs an anti-cybercrime strategy, one that combines cybersecurity measures with robust financial controls. And here's the crucial part: finance leaders, not IT teams, should be leading this effort. Find out why CFOs are best positioned to combat cybercrime—and the five essential elements that make an anti-cybercrime strategy truly effective.

 

Understanding the difference: Cybersecurity versus anti-cybercrime strategy

While cybersecurity and cybercrime might sound similar, they're fundamentally different challenges requiring distinct approaches. As Nigel Phair from UNSW Institute for Cyber Security explains, "Cybercrime is a criminal act perpetrated in the online environment, while cybersecurity is the act of protecting information and the network it resides in."

The crucial distinction is that cybersecurity focuses on protecting your network, applications, computers, and data. An anti-cybercrime strategy, however, zeroes in on protecting your finances, accounts payable processes, and business payments.

Consider business email compromise (BEC) attacks. Criminals don't hack email accounts for the thrill of it—they're after your money. Hacking is simply their means to deceive your accounts payable staff into processing payments to fraudulent bank accounts. Once deception enters the equation, it evolves from a cybersecurity issue to a cybercrime matter.

The harsh reality? Even with robust cybersecurity measures, you can't control third-party security. When suppliers or partners get breached, your organisation becomes vulnerable. That's precisely why an anti-cybercrime strategy is essential—it provides crucial financial controls that limit fallout when cybersecurity breaches occur.

 

How AI tools are undermining traditional anti-fraud controls

Not only are cybercriminals happy to exploit gaps between your finance and IT functions, they’re also quick adopters of tools and technology powered by AI. It’s bad news for any leaders still relying on manual anti-fraud controls.

The cybercrime landscape has dramatically shifted with the rise of generative AI, making traditional anti-fraud controls increasingly inadequate. Cybercriminals now have access to sophisticated tools that allow them to sharpen and scale their attacks, making fraud attempts much harder to detect.

Social engineering tactics have become far more convincing. Where once phishing emails contained obvious spelling errors and awkward phrasing, AI can now generate perfectly crafted messages that mirror executive communication styles. Criminals can analyse thousands of legitimate business emails to replicate tone, terminology, and even specific organisational jargon. They’ve always used these tactics, but now they can take minutes or seconds rather than weeks or months.

Deepfake Scams Are on the Rise

A good example of an emerging threat is the deepfake scam: traditional tactics leveraging synthetic media that imitates real people. Cybercriminals can now create convincing audio and video imitations of executives, making fraudulent payment requests via seemingly authentic phone calls or video conferences. These deepfake attacks bypass traditional verification methods that rely on recognising familiar voices or faces.

AI also enables criminals to conduct more thorough reconnaissance. They can quickly analyse social media profiles, company websites, and public records to build detailed profiles of targets, making their impersonation attempts incredibly convincing. What once required weeks of manual research can now be accomplished in hours.

This technological arms race means that many organisations' existing controls—designed for a pre-AI era—are no longer sufficient. The sophistication gap between cybercriminals and traditional defences is widening rapidly, making comprehensive anti-cybercrime strategies more critical than ever.

 

Why CFOs need to lead anti-cybercrime strategies

CFOs can't afford to delegate cybercrime mitigation entirely to IT teams. As Nigel Phair puts it, "Because cybercrime is all about fraud and scams, and businesses need to protect their money, the CFO is the logical individual in an organisation to oversee the development of an anti-cybercrime strategy."

The numbers speak for themselves—cybercrime can financially cripple organisations. CFOs must demonstrate to stakeholders (shareholders, customers, suppliers, regulators, and courts) that they're taking cybercrime seriously and prioritising risk mitigation. Failing to do so can result in “the cost of chaos.” That means significant financial losses, forensic costs, potential legal consequences, and reputational damage.

The five elements of an anti-cybercrime strategy

An effective anti-cybercrime strategy encompasses people, processes, and technology. These areas involve five critical elements.

1. Training. Beyond traditional cybersecurity awareness, your staff need dedicated cybercrime training covering invoice manipulation tactics, unauthorised payment schemes, supplier breach risks, and insider fraud red flags.

2. Culture. Foster an environment where employees become your eyes and ears, reporting suspicious activities without fear of repercussions. This requires trust, open communication, and robust whistleblower protections.

3. Internal controls. Implement processes that safeguard assets, prevent fraud, and ensure proper financial reporting. These controls must evolve continuously as cybercrime risks change.

4. Pressure testing. Regularly test your controls and staff awareness by simulating real attacks—fake authority emails, spoofed supplier requests, modified invoices—to identify vulnerabilities before criminals do.

5. Technology. Leverage automation to standardise manual processes where human error is most likely. The right technology provides crucial backup when other defensive layers fail.

An anti-cybercrime strategy combines your cybersecurity efforts with robust financial controls, creating a comprehensive defence against modern threats. It's not about replacing cybersecurity—it's about recognising that protecting your money requires more than protecting your systems.

Don't wait for a breach to realise the gaps in your defences. Start building your anti-cybercrime strategy today.

The New Security Standard for Business Payments

Request your Demo