The rise in bank fraud and scams in the digital environment is no longer a problem restricted to individuals. Increasingly, companies—from small service providers to large retail chains—have been targeted by sophisticated attacks that exploit technological and human vulnerabilities. This warning comes from a recent survey by the Brazilian Federation of Banks (Febraban), which points to an accelerated growth in attempted fraud against corporate accounts, surpassing those occurring with individual consumers.
According to lawyer Débora Farias , a specialist in Consumer and Banking Law and partner at Duarte Tonetti Advogados, corporate scams usually have an immediate financial impact and can generate large-scale losses. “When a company has its account hacked or its banking data compromised, the risk is much greater than in an individual fraud. We are talking about transactions involving payroll, suppliers, and an entire operational chain. An attack can paralyze the business and cause losses of millions in a few hours,” she says.
Contrary to the idea of 'automatic protection', not even individual consumers are exempt from proving that they did not recognize the transaction and from pointing out evidence of a bank security breach, a logic that also applies to legal entities.
“In disputes over suspicious transactions, what prevails is the technical demonstration: access logs, audit trails, IP/geo-time inconsistencies, transactional profile anomalies, weaknesses in the authentication process, as well as the company's prompt response to the incident (blocking, preservation of evidence, notification to the bank). The Judiciary tends to weigh the body of evidence and the degree of diligence of each party — company size, maturity of controls, segregation of duties and adherence to internal policies,” explains the specialist.
Among the preventive practices that Débora recommends are the periodic review of bank and digital service contracts, training of financial teams to identify phishing and social engineering attempts, and constant monitoring of suspicious transactions. “Corporate fraud doesn't only happen through system intrusions. Often, it starts with a simple fake email, a malicious link, or an unsuspecting employee. The greatest shield is still information and internal controls,” she emphasizes.
For Débora, the increasing digitalization of business operations requires companies to start viewing banking security as part of corporate governance. “Combating fraud should be a management priority, not just a technology priority. Companies that understand this reduce risks, protect their assets, and strengthen trust in their relationships with banks, suppliers, and customers,” she concludes.
