It’s a statistic that sends a shiver down the backs of SME owners, managers and employees. According to the FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report, business email compromise (BEC) cost US businesses more than $3 billion last year.This makes it one of the most financially damaging cybercrimes on record. AI has made these attacks harder to detect. The question for AP teams is no longer whether they can identify suspicious requests. It is whether the processes around payments make fraud difficult regardless of how convincing it looks.Why AP Teams Are in the CrosshairsAccounts payable sits at the intersection of trust and timing. AP teams process invoices, manage supplier details, and execute payments, often under pressure to keep operations running smoothly. For attackers, that combination is ideal.Most successful fraud does not involve breaking into systems. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) has consistently found that BEC attacks rely on impersonation. This involves posing as a
