As a business owner, you may not be expecting to face a scam, but it’s a problem popping up at small businesses around B.C.

According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, cyber scams cost the average Canadian small business owner $6,200 last year.  

In that time, about 20 per cent of small businesses fell victim to at least one form of fraud.

Ryan Smith, an IT Security Analyst at Valley First, said he works to help business owners fight fraud.

“Securing your software and systems is one part of the solution,” he said. “However, making sure your employees can recognize a scam is even more important as it only takes one wrong click to inadvertently introduce a virus or welcome a scammer into your company’s system.”

He said most cyberattacks end up working because of human error.

“When everyone in your workplace is familiar with the ploys fraudsters use and they know not to be fooled, that’s your first line of defense,” he explained.

Scammers can take money from businesses by getting an employee to unknowingly download ransomware, malicious software that encrypts a company’s files and makes their data inaccessible, and then demanding up to thousands of dollars to get it back.

“Ransomware is the number one threat we’re seeing right now across all types of small, medium and large business,” said Smith. “The ransoms are generally easy to pay, so it ends up being very profitable for the scammers.”

Another prevalent scam is spear phishing, where a scammer pretends to be the business owner or executive and sends a message to an employee asking for help transferring money or paying an invoice.

“Criminals will research your company, find out who runs it, find out who works in accounting and use that information to create an authentic-looking email,” Smith said. “Employees think it’s coming from a legitimate source and they want to be helpful, so they do what they’re asked.”

That’s when the money ends up being transferred right to cybercriminals.

Still, Smith said these situations can be prevented.

“Think before you click,” he said. “Look for any unusual details, verify the sender’s email address, follow up with a personal phone call if you’re still unsure, and don’t open an attachment unless you know it’s safe. You are your own best defense.”