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Email consistently remains a favorite target for attackers, and it’s for good reason. Email is the digital front door to your organization, containing sensitive communications, financial data, and access to critical systems. One of the most damaging forms of attack is email hijacking, a deceptive and often undetected tactic that can lead to wire transfer fraud, data breaches, and serious financial and reputational consequences.
So, what exactly is email hijacking, and more importantly, how can your business defend against it?
Email hijacking occurs when a cybercriminal gains unauthorized access to a legitimate email account or uses spoofed and lookalike domains, known as typosquatted domains, to impersonate the account holder. This dual approach, using real accounts alongside deceptive domains, makes hijacked emails highly convincing and difficult to detect.
Once inside a compromised inbox, attackers can:
This type of attack is especially dangerous in the context of wire transfer conversation hijacking, where an attacker inserts themselves into an ongoing email thread between a business and a client or vendor, often just before a wire transfer is scheduled to occur. Because the attacker has full access to real email threads, they can convincingly change banking details, make a typosquatted domain, and trick recipients into sending large sums of money to fraudulent accounts.
Email thread hijacking usually begins with credential theft, which can occur through:
Once they gain access, attackers often create forwarding rules to monitor email conversations, delete login alerts and sent messages, and wait for an opportune moment, like a wire transfer, to execute their scheme.
Common red flags of email hijacking include:
We highlight the multi-layered strategy that’s necessary to stop email hijacking, and the wire fraud it often facilitates. Here's where to focus:
MFA significantly reduces the chance of unauthorized access. Even if an attacker gets a password, they won’t get in without a second layer of verification.
Educate employees about using complex, unique passwords and encourage the use of password managers. Avoid reusing passwords across systems.
Leverage security reports to watch for unusual login patterns, foreign access attempts, or new forwarding rules.
Regularly review email rules, especially automatic forwarding to external domains. Disable or restrict this function unless there’s truly a verified business need.
Establish a dual-approval process for all wire transfers. No banking information should ever be changed based solely on email communication - always verify via a second channel, such as a phone call to a known contact.
Security training is key. Teach staff how to identify phishing attempts, suspicious messages, and tactics used in business email compromise (BEC) scams. Reinforce this regularly through simulated phishing tests and awareness campaigns.
Your response plan should include:
If you suspect email hijacking, take immediate action by changing the compromised account’s password, alerting your IT or security team, and notifying relevant stakeholders about the fraudulent communications. Additionally, follow documentation requirements for legal and regulatory compliance.
Email hijacking isn’t just about stealing information - it’s about stealing money. Attackers are leveraging trust and timing to carry out sophisticated wire fraud scams, often without triggering technical alarms.
That’s why security tools alone aren’t enough. Organizations must pair technology with strong internal policies - especially when it comes to wire transfer verification protocols.
At Locknet, we help businesses strengthen their defenses with proactive IT cybersecurity, incident response planning, and employee security training. If you're unsure whether your current processes are enough to stop email hijacking or wire fraud, let’s talk.
