Everyone thinks they'd spot a scam email. "I'd never fall for that." And you're probably right — about the obvious ones.

The email written in Comic Sans asking you to wire $50,000 to a "prince"? Yeah, nobody's clicking that.

But here's what actually happens at 8:30 AM on a Wednesday:

You've got 14 unread emails. Three are from vendors. One is a quote follow-up from a supplier you've used for two years. They're asking you to update their bank details before Friday's payment run. The email looks identical to every other email they've ever sent you. Same signature. Same tone. Same logo.

Except it's not them.

Business Email Compromise cost small businesses $2.7 billion last year. Not from obvious fakes — from emails that look routine enough to approve on autopilot.

The pattern is always the same:

• Familiar identity — they impersonate someone you already trust

• Manufactured urgency — there's always a deadline pushing you to act fast

• Payment pressure — they want you to change bank details, approve a new vendor, or expedite a transfer

I built a framework called Proof Before Pay — three checks you run before approving any vendor email. Takes about 2 minutes. Catches the emails that look too normal to question.

This guide walks through the whole system, including a morning inbox workflow that sorts vendor emails into safe, suspicious, and hold-for-review before your first coffee.

If you approve vendor invoices, quotes, or purchase requests — this is for you.