Quick answer
If a supplier's bank details change just before a payment is due, treat it as suspicious until confirmed. Call the supplier on a number you already have — not one in the email — and confirm the new details verbally. Scamwatch warns that business email compromise scams send expected invoices with altered payee and contact details. A five-minute call is the cheapest protection a business has.
Key points
- Urgency plus new bank details is the classic pattern of a payment redirection scam.
- Always confirm changes by calling a number you already hold, never one supplied in the email.
- Fast payments leave quickly and are hard to reverse, so check before sending, not after.
- A written change-of-details process protects your business when you're busy or away.
It usually arrives on a busy afternoon. An email from a supplier you’ve dealt with for years: “Please note our banking details have changed. Kindly update your records and use the attached details for the payment due tomorrow.” The logo is right, the invoice number is right, the amount is right. Only the bank account is new.
This is the moment payment redirection scams are designed for. The urgency is the point. This guide gives you a simple routine to protect your business in five minutes, even when the payment really is due tomorrow.
How does a payment redirection scam work?
Scamwatch groups these under business email compromise scams and warns that scammers send “an invoice you were expecting from a client or supplier, but with altered payee and contact details”. The scam works because:
- The invoice is expected. You were going to pay it anyway.
- The details are convincing. Scammers may have access to real emails, so the invoice number, amount and even the signature look right.
- There’s a reason to hurry. A deadline, a threatened account hold, a manager who’s “travelling”.
- The change is small. Just a BSB and account number, which few people memorise.
Scamwatch also notes that scammers impersonate trusted contacts using phone calls, emails, texts and fake websites, often with official logos, branding and professional language. A polished email is not evidence of a genuine one.
What’s the five-minute check?
Every time bank details change, or a request feels unusual, run this routine before paying:
- Stop. Don’t pay from the email, and don’t reply to it with questions.
- Find a number you already trust — from your own contacts, a previous invoice you received before this email, or the supplier’s website typed in yourself.
- Call and ask the person you normally deal with to confirm that the details have changed and to read the new BSB and account number to you.
- Compare what they say with what the email says.
- Record who you spoke to, when, and what they confirmed.
- If anything doesn’t match, don’t pay. Tell the supplier what you received so they can check their own systems.
That’s it. It takes five minutes and protects the whole payment.
What are the red flags?
| Red flag | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Bank details change just before a large payment | Scammers time changes to catch big invoices |
| The email pushes urgency or secrecy | Pressure is designed to stop you checking |
| A slightly different email address or domain | One letter changed is easy to miss |
| New account name that doesn’t match the business | A personal name or unrelated company is a warning |
| Phone number in the email differs from your records | Calling it may reach the scammer |
| Request to pay part to one account and part to another | Unusual splits are a common trick |
Tools can help too. AusPayPlus describes Confirmation of Payee as a layer of protection for payments to BSB and account numbers, designed to help protect people from scams and mistaken payments. You can also check a business’s ABN and registered name on ABN Lookup. But neither replaces a call to a number you already trust.
Why does speed make this more dangerous?
Fast payments are brilliant when you need money to arrive quickly. The same speed means a payment to a scammer can be moved on within moments. The New Payments Platform runs 24/7, so there’s no overnight window for anyone to notice. Checking before you pay is far more effective than trying to recall a payment afterwards. Our guide on PayID, Osko and when money arrives explains how fast payments work.
If a genuine deadline is squeezing you, don’t let it squeeze out the check. A short delay while you confirm details is almost always acceptable to a real supplier. And if the real problem is that the money isn’t there yet, enquire tonight so funding and verification can both happen in the morning.
How do I build a change-of-details process?
A written process protects the business when you’re busy, away or when someone new is paying the bills.
- One rule: no bank detail change is actioned from email alone. Every change needs a phone confirmation to a known number.
- Two people: where possible, one person updates bank details and a different person approves the next payment.
- A log: record every change, who confirmed it and when.
- A pause: new or changed payees wait for a check before any large payment, however urgent.
- Training: make sure anyone who pays invoices knows the red flags.
Share the process with your bookkeeper and anyone with access to online banking. Review it once a year, and again whenever someone new starts paying invoices, so it stays part of how the business works rather than a document nobody reads. If you use accounting software that stores supplier bank details, restrict who can edit them.
What should I do if I’ve already paid?
Act fast:
- Call your bank immediately and ask them to try to stop or recover the payment.
- Tell the genuine supplier, using their known number, so they can secure their email and warn others.
- Follow Scamwatch’s guidance on what to do if you’ve been scammed, including reporting it.
- Change passwords and check your own email for signs of compromise, since scammers sometimes watch both sides.
You’ll still owe the genuine supplier. If that leaves a cash gap, see supplier payment due tomorrow and our guide to asking a supplier for more time.
An illustrative near miss
Illustrative: The bookkeeper for a joinery business in Ballarat receives an email at 3.50pm from a timber supplier: new bank details, $18,300 due by tomorrow to keep the account open. She notices the supplier’s phone number in the signature is different from the one saved in her contacts. She calls the saved number. The supplier’s accounts manager confirms their details haven’t changed and that their email has been compromised. The bookkeeper pays the correct account the next morning, and the supplier thanks her for checking.
What about customers paying you — can they be targeted too?
Yes. Scammers sometimes impersonate your business to your customers, sending invoices with your logo and their own bank details. Your customers then pay the scammer, and you’re left chasing money they believe they’ve paid. A few steps reduce the risk:
- Tell customers how you’ll communicate bank changes — for example, “We will never change our bank details by email alone.”
- Put a PayID on your invoices, so customers can see your business’s PayID name before paying. Our guide on PayID and fast payments explains how it works.
- Secure your email with strong passwords and multi-factor authentication, so scammers can’t send from your real address.
- Watch for unexplained late payments from reliable customers. If one says “but we paid last week”, check immediately whether they paid the right account.
If a customer does pay a scammer, the gap in your own cash flow can be sudden. Our page on a customer who paid late covers how to bridge a missing receipt while it’s resolved, and the ten-day cash calendar helps you spot the missing payment quickly.
Protecting your cash, and topping it up when needed
A careful payment routine protects the money you have. If an urgent supplier payment is coming and the money isn’t there yet, a quick enquiry tonight can line up funding for the morning.
Enquiring takes about 60 seconds and involves no credit check. Your details aren’t broadcast to lenders; one team reads your enquiry and a real person calls you to talk it through. A genuine specialist will only discuss the enquiry you sent and will never ask for banking passwords. Please be accurate about the amount, the supplier and the deadline so we can match the right option first time.
Frequently asked questions
How do business email compromise scams work?
Scammers gain access to, or imitate, a supplier's or colleague's email and send a genuine-looking invoice or message with altered bank details. Scamwatch describes these as invoices you were expecting, but with altered payee and contact details.
What should I do if I think I've paid a scammer?
Contact your bank immediately — speed matters. Then follow Scamwatch's guidance on what to do if you've been scammed and report it. Tell the genuine supplier too, so they can warn other customers.
Is it rude to call a supplier to check bank details?
Not at all. Most suppliers are glad you checked, because they lose out too when customers pay a scammer. Many businesses now expect a verification call for any change.
Does Confirmation of Payee stop these scams?
It adds a layer of protection when paying to a BSB and account number by checking the payee details. It's helpful, but it doesn't replace a phone call to a number you trust.
What if the payment deadline doesn't leave time to check?
Make time. A short delay while you confirm details is far cheaper than losing the payment. Tell the supplier you're verifying and ask them to call you back on their known number.