In today’s digital-first economy, email remains the backbone of business communication and the top target for cybercriminals. Among the most dangerous threats organizations face are phishing and business email compromise (BEC). While these tactics differ in execution, they are increasingly intertwined, often forming a devastating one-two punch that can bypass technical defenses and prey on human trust.
What is Phishing?
Phishing is a broad tactic that uses deceptive emails, texts, or messages to trick recipients into revealing sensitive information, clicking malicious links, or downloading malware. The most common forms include:
- Credential Harvesting: Fake login pages designed to steal usernames and passwords.
- Malicious Attachments or Links: Lure users into executing malware that provides attackers access to internal systems.
- Impersonation: Attackers pretend to be vendors, executives, or colleagues to build trust and manipulate victims.
Phishing is often the entry point to more targeted, high-stakes attacks, like BEC.
What is Business Email Compromise?
Business Email Compromise is a form of spear-phishing where attackers impersonate, or take over, a legitimate business email account. Unlike mass phishing campaigns, BEC is precise, calculated, and often financially motivated. Common BEC scenarios include:
- CEO Fraud. Impersonating an executive to trick employees into transferring funds or sensitive data.
- Vendor Email Compromise. Hijacking a supplier’s email to send fake invoices or change payment details.
- Payroll Redirects. Convincing HR to reroute employee paychecks to attacker-controlled accounts.
These attacks rarely involve malware. Instead, they exploit trust, authority, and urgency, making them harder to detect and easier to fall for.
The Phishing-BEC Pipeline
Many BEC attacks begin with a successful phishing email. For example:
- Credential Harvesting. A phishing email tricks an employee into entering credentials on a spoofed login page.
- Account Takeover. The attacker logs into the real account, monitors email activity, and studies communication patterns.
- BEC Execution. Using that compromised account, the attacker launches a believable internal request, like a fake invoice or wire transfer order.
This hybrid approach allows attackers to blend in seamlessly and avoid detection for weeks, even months, before striking.
Why Traditional Defenses Aren’t Enough
While spam filters, antivirus software, and firewalls are essential, they often fall short against modern phishing and BEC tactics, which:
- Use secure infrastructure and social engineering, not malicious payloads.
- Target human judgment rather than application, network, or system vulnerabilities.
- Evolve faster than signature-based security tools can keep up.
That’s why a layered defense that combines technology, training, and testing is essential.
How Gilliam Security Can Help
At Gilliam Security, we specialize in protecting businesses from today’s most dangerous email-based threats. Whether you’re concerned about phishing, BEC, or both, we offer comprehensive solutions to strengthen your defenses:
- Email Security Evaluations. We assess your current email infrastructure for misconfigurations, vulnerabilities, and exposure to phishing and BEC risks.
- Security Awareness Training. We deliver targeted training sessions that go beyond compliance teaching employees how to recognize, report, and resist social engineering.
- Simulated Phishing Campaigns. Test your team’s readiness with realistic, data-driven phishing simulations that identify risk areas and guide future training.
- Incident Readiness & Response. We help you prepare for and respond to email compromises with playbooks, tabletop exercises, and expert advisory services.
Don’t wait for a real attack to test your defenses. Let Gilliam Security help you evaluate, educate, and elevate your security posture.