Phishing & Spoofing: Why UK Businesses Can No Longer Ignore Scams

Every day, scams start with one deceptively simple message: an email, text or online message that looks like it came from someone you trust, but isn’t. For UK businesses, these scams are now one of the most common causes of cyber incidents and can lead to financial loss, reputational damage, and operational disruption (gov.uk).

Phishing and spoofing are no longer niche technical problems. They are everyday business risks affecting organisations of all sizes, across all sectors.

 

What Is Phishing - In Plain English

Phishing is when someone pretends to be a trusted person or organisation to trick you into doing something you shouldn’t, such as clicking a link, sharing information, or making a payment.

Spoofing is a form of phishing where the message appears to come from a real, trusted source, such as your business, a supplier, or a well-known organisation, even though it hasn’t. These messages work because they look familiar and believable.

Unlike technical breaches, phishing plays on human trust first and technology second. And that makes it sneaky and effective (zensec.co.uk).

 

Phishing: The Most Common Cyber Risk for UK Organisations

Official UK government surveys show that phishing is by far the most common type of cyber attack experienced by businesses and charities that reported a cyber incident. In the 2025 Cyber Security Breaches Survey, a striking 93 % of businesses that experienced cyber crime said phishing was the method used (gov.uk).

That means phishing is not rare, isolated, or confined to big organisations. It is a mainstream risk facing everyday business operations.

What makes phishing particularly difficult to manage is that it doesn’t rely on hacking systems. Instead, criminals exploit timing, pressure and trust, often targeting busy teams, finance departments, or senior decision-makers.

 

Real Incidents That Show the Business Impact

Mass Phishing Campaigns Affecting Thousands of Organisations

Cybercriminals recently distributed tens of thousands of phishing emails through a service used by organisations in consulting, tech, finance, healthcare and other sectors. These emails were crafted to look like trusted communications and tricked recipients into clicking malicious links that could steal credentials or deliver malware (techradar.com).
This kind of campaign highlights that even enterprise-grade email infrastructure can be abused to reach inboxes across many industries.

UK MPs Targeted with Simple, Convincing Messaging Scams

A surge in phishing attacks aimed at UK Members of Parliament shows how scammers use messaging apps to impersonate support services and trick users into giving up access codes or clicking harmful links. These attacks required only a phone number to begin and have led authorities to urge stronger authentication and safer communication apps (theguardian).

While this example mentions political accounts, the methodology - impersonation of legitimate voices - closely mirrors what businesses face every day.

Everyday Business Fraud Costs in the UK

Scam monitoring organisations in the UK reported money stolen in fraud cases through 2025 is in the hundreds of millions of pounds, with scams, including phishing,  responsible for a significant portion. This includes fake compensation emails, impersonation of legitimate services, and fraudulent notices that can trick customers and business contacts alike (restless.co.uk).

For example, scammers have pretended to be official financial services bodies to lure victims into sharing information or contacting fake help numbers (fscs).

Repeated Business Email Compromise (BEC) Examples Worldwide

Business Email Compromise — where attackers impersonate executives or partners to manipulate transactions — is widely recognised as one of the most damaging email fraud types for organisations. These scams trick staff into sending funds or sensitive information by mimicking legitimate requests from senior executives or suppliers (FBI).

Although documented examples often cite larger international cases, the techniques are routinely used in UK SME and mid-market frauds too, such as fake “urgent invoice payments” and spoofed vendor requests (as outlined in phishing scam guides (ansecurity.com).

 

Why These Scams Work - Human Trust First

Phishing isn’t just about technology; it exploits people’s trust:

• Familiar company names or supplier brands in messages

• Urgent language that pressures staff to act quickly

• Personalised details that make fraud look credible

• Use of multiple communication channels — email, SMS, or messaging apps

Scammers have also expanded beyond simple emails — leveraging social engineering across devices and platforms — making detection even harder (zensec).

 

The Real Costs to Your Business

Even if a phishing attempt doesn’t succeed, the aftermath can still be costly:

• Time spent investigating suspicious activity

• Lost productivity while systems are secured

• Regulatory or compliance reporting obligations

• Reputational impact with clients and partners

Official UK data shows that a significant percentage of phishing attacks result in direct disruption and financial cost — with many organisations having to report the incident internally or externally after impact (gov.uk).

Protecting Your Business Starts with Awareness

There’s no magic switch to stop all phishing — but awareness and preparedness make a difference:

✔ Train staff to recognise suspicious messages
✔ Validate unusual requests by calling or confirming independently
✔ Encourage reporting of potential phishing attempts internally
✔ Use safe, privacy-first tools to see whether your business identity itself could be unwittingly impersonated

One practical step is to check whether your business email domain could be impersonated or spoofed.

👉 Try the Email Domain Security Check:
https://wisteriasecurity.co.uk/email-domain-security-check

This free tool helps you understand whether your business name or email presence could be spoofed, explained in plain English and based on publicly available data - no inbox access or message content scanning required.

 

After the Incident - Practical Support and Resilience

Even with training and good practices, phishing incidents can still happen. For many UK businesses, having the right support in place to respond and recover matters as much as prevention. That’s where cyber liability insurance can play a helpful role, providing assistance with investigation costs, legal advice, customer communication, and operational continuity in the event of a successful scam.

For tailored advice on how cyber liability insurance fits into your overall risk strategy, talking with a specialist at Ratcliffes can be a practical part of strengthening your business resilience.

 

Final Thought

Phishing and spoofing are not fringe risks.  Today they are among the most common ways attackers try to exploit UK businesses, large and small alike.

Understanding how these scams work and where your business may be exposed is a practical step toward protecting your operations, your reputation and the people who trust your organisation.