Cranbrook RCMP warns businesses and public of email payment fraud

May 7, 2026 - Cranbrook, BC, British Columbia
From: Cranbrook RCMP

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The Cranbrook RCMP is warning local businesses and the public about a fraud trend involving compromised business email accounts, resulting in redirected payments and financial loss.

The Cranbrook RCMP is actively investigating multiple occurrences of fraud and urge anyone who has experienced situation, similar in nature to contact your local RCMP detachment. 

In the cases reported:

• Cybercriminals gained unauthorized access to business email accounts hosted through Microsoft 365 portals, including accounts protected by two‑factor authentication.
• Once access was obtained, the fraudsters sent emails from the legitimate business email address to that company’s clients.
• These emails requested payment of outstanding invoices and advised that funds be sent to a different bank account than normally used.
• The emails appeared legitimate, as the fraudsters had access to detailed billing information and exact amounts owed.
• Client email replies were intercepted or re‑routed, preventing the business from seeing the correspondence and delaying detection of the fraud.

Because the emails originated from trusted addresses and contained accurate invoice details, recipients had no immediate reason to suspect fraud.

The Cranbrook RCMP emphasizes that any request to change payment instructions should always be independently verified before payment is made.

“Public awareness and verification remain the most effective tools in preventing financial loss,” says Constable Carlee Munro, Cranbrook RCMP

If you receive a request to send payment to a new or different account:

• Verify the request by calling a known and trusted contact at the business using previously established contact information.
• Do not rely solely on email to confirm banking or payment changes.
• Where possible, verify banking changes in person.

The Cranbrook RCMP encourages businesses to:

• Educate staff and clients about this fraud trend.
• Implement internal policies requiring verbal or in‑person verification for all changes to payment or banking information.
• Regularly review email security settings, access logs, and forwarding rules.
• Contact their financial institution immediately if suspicious activity is identified.

Anyone who believes they have been targeted or affected by this type of fraud is encouraged to contact their financial institution immediately and report the incident to their local RCMP detachment.

Quotes

“Public awareness and verification remain the most effective tools in preventing financial loss.” 

Constable Carlee Munro, Cranbrook RCMP

Contacts