Businesses reported a 29% susceptibility rate to lose money when targeted for scams, according to the Better Business Bureau’s report on scam activity in 2024 .
The overall median dollar loss for businesses was $1,200, notably higher than that for consumers ($130).
Business scams often exploit trust and routine workflows, such as invoice processing or purchase orders, making them especially damaging when successful.
Top 3 Riskiest Business Scams
| Rank | Scam Type | BBB Risk Index | Median $ Loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Online Purchase | 79.6 | $1,000 |
| 2 | Phishing/Social Engineering | 15.0 | $1,100 |
| 3 | Fake Invoice/Supplier Bill | 9.6 | $584 |
What Are Each of the Business-Focused Scam Types?
Often small business owners and managers ask for a synopsis of each scam type that can affect them. Here’s how the BBB outlines each one:
Business Email Compromise (BEC)
A scammer impersonates a senior executive or vendor via email (or another channel) to trick an employee into transferring funds or sensitive data. Often the fake email looks like it’s from the CEO or a trusted supplier, instructing the employee to wire money to a fraudulent account or pay a bogus invoice urgently. This is a costly fraud affecting companies of all sizes. Learn to protect your company with BBB’s Business Email Compromise Tips.
Fake Invoice/Supplier Bill
Scammers target businesses with phony invoices for products or services the company never ordered. They hope busy accounting departments will pay the bill without noticing it’s fake. Some fraudsters even ship a small unordered product (or send domain renewal notices, office supplies, directory listings, etc.) and then aggressively bill the company for it. Always verify invoices from unfamiliar vendors. For guidance, see BBB’s Business Tip: Unusual Invoice Scams.
Retail Business Imposter
Scammers pretend to be well-known retail or e-commerce companies, contacting businesses or consumers via unsolicited texts/emails. They might ask the recipient to click a link to verify account details or resolve a payment issue. The goal is to steal login credentials or financial info by impersonating a trusted retailer. Always be wary of unexpected account-related messages – contact the company through official channels if in doubt.
Worthless Problem-Solving Service
In this scheme, scammers sell businesses on low-cost solutions to common problems – but it’s all smoke and mirrors. For example, a scammer might claim they can repair a company’s online reputation or quickly fix bad search results, or “guarantee” to eliminate a business’s debt or tax issues for a fee. After the business pays, little to no real service is delivered. (If it sounds too easy or too good to be true, it likely is – research any B2B service provider thoroughly.)
“Yellow Pages”/Directory Listing Scam
A fraudulent operation will convince a business it needs to pay for an advertising listing in a directory (often presented as a “Yellow Pages” or industry directory). In reality, the directory either doesn’t exist at all or is an obscure website with no value. Scammers send official-looking invoices for these fake listings or ads. Legitimate directories do not bill companies out of the blue for unsolicited listings. Always verify directory services and don’t pay for unrequested ads. (The BBB advises checking whether a directory is real and widely distributed before spending on any listing.)
Source: Descriptions adapted from the Better Business Bureau’s 2024 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report (Appendix A). For a full list of scam prevention resources, visit BBB’s Scam Tips Center.