Manufacturing companies have long been a prime target for fraud attacks, but email attacks like BEC manufacturing attacks are accelerating. Just in Q1 2024, fraud attempts in this sector have jumped 8%. In Q3 alone:
- 10% of emails to manufacturing were BEC (up from 2% in Q1)
- 27% of emails were malicious—the highest across all sectors
- 36% of BEC samples were crafted by generative AI
These findings come from VIPRE’s Q3 2024 Email Threat Report and underscore how BEC manufacturing attacks are evolving beyond human deception — now powered by AI and precision timing.
That evolution aligns with a broader trend: according to LevelBlue’s 2025 Cyber Resilience in Manufacturing report, 37% of manufacturing executives say they’re facing significantly more attacks than last year, and 28% experienced a breach in the past 12 months.
Despite this, only 32% feel prepared for AI-powered threats and 30% for deepfake or synthetic identity attacks—proof that attackers are advancing faster than defenses.
Why Cybercriminals Target Manufacturers
Manufacturers are especially exposed to BEC and phishing campaigns because they:
- Manage thousands of suppliers and vendors.
- Operate multiple Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and financial systems.
- Process millions in financial transactions and sensitive customer data.
- Hold valuable intellectual property and trade secrets.
- Depend on legacy systems never built with cybersecurity in mind.
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Rely on complex supply chains that attackers exploit through smaller vendors.
These factors—financial complexity, operational dependence, and historic underinvestment—make the sector a high-value target for BEC manufacturing attacks.
Recent BEC and Payment Fraud Incidents
This surge isn’t just visible in the data. High-profile cases over the past year reveal the financial damage BEC manufacturing attacks are inflicting on the industry. In August 2024, Orion, a chemical manufacturing company, lost $60 million in a BEC attack. Around the same time, Toyota Boshoku, a filter manufacturer, lost $37 million after a cybercriminal tricked an employee into changing bank account information for a wire transfer.
Today, BEC accounts for 58% of all phishing attempts targeting manufacturers, proving the threat is no longer isolated—it is systemic.
Trustmi’s Take:
AI is fueling more advanced payment fraud schemes, from deepfakes to real-time impersonation. Yet as of 2022, only 18% of manufacturers had comprehensive anti-fraud programs. In 2023, 62% reported plans to implement automation, but few aimed at fraud prevention specifically.
Until manufacturers invest in proactive fraud defense, BEC manufacturing attacks and financial losses will continue to rise.
To effectively combat these threats, organizations need a multi-layered strategy:
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AI-powered detection tools to spot behavior anomalies.
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Regular employee training on phishing and impersonation.
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Robust verification processes that go beyond simple callbacks and bank account checks.
BEC manufacturing attacks are only one piece of a much larger fraud problem. Attackers are using AI, impersonation, and precision timing to manipulate trust and steal millions.
Download the Guide to Eliminating Socially Engineered Fraud to learn how attackers exploit finance workflows—and the defenses manufacturers need now.
