Stopping Cyber Fraud in its Tracks

Creating a robust security and awareness plan to protect your company.

Cyber-enabled fraud is no longer a distant threat — it’s a daily business risk. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, reported cybercrime losses reached $20.9 billion in 2025, a 26% increase from 2024.¹

Today’s attacks are often orchestrated by organized criminal groups using a mix of impersonation, social engineering, credential theft, and AI-assisted tactics. The reality is simple: prevention is far less costly than recovery.

Why every business needs a plan.

Effective cybersecurity requires layered protection. Think of it like securing a home — a lock, a chain, and an alarm system all work together. The same principle applies to your business: the more layers you put in place, the more likely bad actors will move on to an easier target.

Build a cross-functional response team.

A coordinated team of trusted advisors can help your organization prepare for and respond to threats with confidence. This group should include representatives from:

• Information technology: IT can implement a multilayered security approach that combines next-generation firewalls, intrusion detection, and endpoint monitoring with network segmentation to contain threats, strong encryption (such as AES-256 and SSL/TLS) to protect data, and phishing-resistant multifactor authentication to prevent unauthorized access.
• Accounting: Ensure that role-based access controls follow zero-trust principles so employees have access only to what they need. Regularly review and update permissions.
• Insurance: Maintain appropriate cyber liability coverage, including protection for business interruption and recovery costs.
• Legal: Ensure compliance with breach notification and disclosure requirements.
• Public relations: Prepare a communications plan to manage reputational risk in the event of an incident.
• Finance: Align fraud prevention efforts with your banking partners. Services such as Positive Pay can help detect unauthorized check and ACH transactions before they clear.

Strengthen your backup and recovery strategy.

Strong backups are your safety net. Work with your IT team to implement:

• Automated backups: Schedule secure, off-site backups of critical data using both cloud and offline storage. Ensure that backups are immutable.
• Disaster recovery planning: Develop and regularly update a disaster recovery plan to restore systems and data quickly. Test it frequently.
• Incident response procedures: Document clear steps for identifying, containing, eliminating, and recovering from incidents.

Make cybersecurity a continuous effort.

Cybersecurity is not a one-time initiative. It requires ongoing attention and regular reinforcement. A strong program should include:

• Employee education and role-based training
• Phishing simulations and refresher sessions
• Tabletop exercises and incident response drills

As threats evolve, so should your tools. In addition to traditional vulnerability scanners like Nessus or OpenVAS, consider modern solutions that provide visibility across cloud environments, applications, containers, and internet-facing assets.

A well-practiced incident response plan does more than speed recovery — it protects revenue, operations, and reputation. When teams are trained and prepared, they can quickly contain threats, reduce downtime, and avoid costly missteps that often occur in the early moments of a breach.

Take the Next Step

Protecting your business from payment fraud and cyber threats starts with a plan. Connect with Webster Bank to explore fraud prevention tools, treasury solutions, and expert guidance designed to help safeguard your organization.

¹ FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center’s 2025 IC3 Annual Report

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