·6 min read·
How One Phishing Email Can Destroy a Small Business
A real-world look at how phishing attacks work, why small businesses are targeted, and how cyber insurance pays out when it happens.
A phishing email looks like a normal request from a vendor or executive. Click the link, enter your credentials, and the attacker is in your system. Here’s what happens next.
The Attack Chain
- Email arrives looking like it’s from your CFO or a known vendor
- You click a link or open an attachment
- Malware installs silently — or your credentials are harvested
- Attacker monitors your email for weeks
- They send a fake invoice to your customer with their wire info
- Customer pays the attacker. You never know until your customer asks why their payment is overdue.
What Cyber Insurance Pays For
- Forensic investigation to find the breach
- Legal counsel to handle notification requirements
- Customer notification and credit monitoring
- Recovery of stolen funds (if covered by social engineering endorsement)
- PR and reputation repair
Without Cyber Coverage
60% of small businesses that suffer a successful cyber attack close within 6 months.