You stop invoice and payment fraud at a construction firm by treating every request to change bank details as suspect and verifying it by phone on a known number before any money moves, backed by managed email security, MFA and account monitoring. Construction firms move large payments between clients, suppliers and subcontractors, which makes them a prime target. Closing off how these scams work protects real money.
The classic scam: a convincing email, often from a hacked supplier account, asks you to pay a new bank account. Here’s how to stop it.
1. Verify every change of bank details
Make it a firm rule that no change to a supplier’s or subcontractor’s payment details is accepted on an email alone. Confirm it by calling a known, pre-agreed number. This single habit stops the most common and costly scam in construction.
2. Lock down email
Managed filtering, impersonation protection and MFA on every mailbox make it far harder for a criminal to read your mail, pose as a supplier, or hijack an account in the first place.
3. Watch for hijacked accounts
Monitoring flags the signs of a compromised mailbox, such as a login from an unexpected place or a new forwarding rule, so a hijacked account is caught before it’s used to send a fake invoice.
4. Train your team
Your office and finance staff are the last line of defence. Regular training and a simple “when in doubt, phone to check” culture keep everyone alert to the warning signs.
A real example: a payment scam headed off
We support construction and trades businesses where a staff member forwarded two suspicious emails to ask if they were genuine. We checked the sender, links and intent and gave a clear verdict, so nothing malicious was clicked and no fraudulent payment request was acted on. Turning doubt into a quick answer is what prevents fraud.
For a construction or trades business, this is part of managed IT and security that usually costs about £45 to £100 per user per month, scaling with headcount, how many staff work from site, and the project, finance and payroll software you rely on.
Why construction and trades firms choose First Stop IT
First Stop IT has supported businesses since 2002, including construction and trades businesses with office and site-based teams. We know how these firms run: people working from sites and on the move, finance and payroll software like QuickBooks, Sage and Xero, secure remote access, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, and the security that protects a firm handling projects, client sites and payments. We support construction and trades firms in Harlow, Bishop’s Stortford and across Essex, Hertfordshire and London. Our credentials include:
- Cyber Essentials Certified
- IASME Cyber Assurance (Gold)
- NCSC Assured Service Provider (Cyber Advisor for Cyber Essentials)
- Microsoft Partner
- Crown Commercial Service Supplier (G-Cloud)
- Quality Principles Certified
We look after more than 2,000 endpoints across 50 companies, we’ve been named a Top 50 UK MSP for three years running, and we support organisations with 10 to 100 employees across Essex, Hertfordshire and London, including Harlow and Bishop’s Stortford.
Book a free IT and cyber security review
Worried about invoice fraud? Book a free IT and cyber security review with First Stop IT and we’ll check your email security and verification process.